Take a virtual tour of £7m Northampton Museum and Art Gallery refurbishment

You can now see what Northampton's museum in Guildhall Road will look like once the refurbishment is completed.

GSS Architecture is allowing viewers to take a glimpse inside the museum and art gallery and navigate through a selection of the new extended spaces via an online tool at www.northampton.gov.uk/virtual-tour.Its VR tour shows seven separate viewpoints to illustrate the connecting spaces between the galleries, but it does not cover the entirety of the redevelopment works. When completed, the extension will house a café and link space, along with a new shoe gallery, showcasing the museum’s world-renowned collection. The Old Gaol Block development will include a new temporary exhibition gallery and events space.Councillor Anna King, cabinet member for community engagement, said: “This innovative VR tour is both engaging and interactive, and gives a really good idea of what people will see once the museum and art gallery is open.“We’re particularly excited about the huge atrium space, which will provide a stunning new communal area, linking the various parts of the building together. Work on this space has already started in reality, but this extensive VR tour shows just what a vast area it will be once complete. “When the museum reopens in 2020, it will present Northampton’s rich history, welcome a range of touring exhibitions and provide a great destination for families, social meetings, events and private functions.”Tom Jagger, associate at GSS Architecture, which was contracted to design the new museum, said: “Many of these spaces cannot be viewed together before works started and so the VR tour has been a key tool to allow our client to visualise the proposed design.“GSS are delighted to be working on this key addition to the growing Northampton Cultural Quarter. By providing an enriched and improved museum offer, the project will contribute to the regeneration of the town centre, enhancing the entertainment, learning and leisure opportunities Northampton has to offer.”Wildgoose Construction Limited was appointed in September to carry out the refurbushment works. The museum is anticipated to reopen in the spring 2020.