Museum in Lerwick to reopen after Covid shutdown

Shetland Amenity Trust has decided to reopen the Shetland Museum and Archives tomorrow (Tuesday).

The trust said the decision had been taken after careful consideration of government guidelines and recent statements from NHS Shetland concerning the likely course of Covid-19 locally.

Entry will be allowed for only pre-booked individuals and groups with a range of social distancing measures in place.

The number of visitors allowed into the building at one time has been restricted to ensure social distancing between groups in line with the successful precautions adopted during the last return from lockdown.

Amenity trust interim chief executive Sandy Middleton said: “We are really excited to be welcoming visitors back to both the Shetland Museum and Archives and to provide somewhere for people to visit after such a long period of restrictions.

“The safety and comfort of our staff and visitors is our top priority. We’ve been working hard to review all the necessary precautions are in place including pre-booked tickets, restricted visitor numbers, enhanced cleaning, sneeze screens, hand sanitising stations and one-way routes in certain areas.

“The feedback we’ve received from visitors when we reopened last year was really positive, and we were pleased to hear that people enjoyed their experience with us and felt safe. We feel confident that we will be able to offer the same level of service and safety this year.”

Ms Middleton said the re-opening plan had been created to be flexible and ready to adapt if the need arise; either as a result of further guidance from the government, or because of things learned during the early stages of re-opening.

Visitors are asked to book online or by telephone, in order for staff to manage numbers.

Plans were also well under way for the annual opening of Sumburgh Lighthouse for, hopefully, a full summer season, Ms Middleton added.