Roman museum hits visitor target for first year

Leicester's flagship £16.8m Roman museum has achieved its visitor target in its first year, according to the latest figures.

The Leicester City Council-run Jewry Wall Museum marked its first anniversary at the end of July.

The council aimed to attract 35,000 visitors in its first 12 months and has said 35,234 passed through the doors in that period.

Leicester's mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said he was pleased with the first year's figures given the "challenges" facing the tourism industry.

However, opposition councillors said they feared visitor numbers may have peaked already and expressed concerns about the museum's long term-future.

The museum stands next to the landmark Jewry Wall itself, the remains of a bathhouse that served the old Roman city, known as Ratae, from about AD 160.

"I've always said Jewry Wall is an excellent addition to Leicester's offer to visitors," Soulsby said.

"It has been a challenging year for attractions up and down the land, and many places have struggled during a cost of living crisis.

"For our figures to have held up so well is very encouraging."

The council said the 35,000 target had been set based on factors including the total number of potential visitors living up to 60 minutes drive away from the museum.

The calculation used an industry-recognised target, the council said.

It also estimated the attraction had generated about £3.7m for the city's wider economy in its first year.

According to the council, 65% of the museum's visitors came from outside the city.

"I hope we can build on this," Soulsby added.

"The feedback we have had is that visitors find [the] Jewry Wall [museum] is a very impressive experience that tells them about how life was in Roman Leicester."

The city council said the number of visitors included 1,742 people who returned using an offer that allows people come back for free for a year after buying a ticket.

Green Party city councillor Patrick Kitterick said: "My concern is the first year is going to be the peak year because there is the curiosity factor.

"They have just got over their target, which is good, but they did open it up and allow people in for free for a weekend in July so I wonder how that affected the numbers.

"We have spent a lot of time and money on this and if we want it to be viable, I think, we should make it free to enter but open it for fewer days."

The museum currently opens seven days a week.

Work on the creation of the new museum, in the former Vaughan College building, began in 2021, but was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the original contractor going bust.

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