Derby Silk Mill

• 1. Introduction

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  Derby Silk Mill takes its name from a mill that no longer exists. The current museum in Derby, England, stands on the former site of Lombe's Mill. That historic silk operation helped anchor the southern end of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. What happened on that ground over the following decades involved civic ambition, financial sacrifice, and a rebuilding effort that survived obstacles its planners never anticipated. How a city chose to reinvent this place, and what tested that reinvention in its early years, is what this documentary examines.

• 2. The Industrial Museum Years

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  On the 29th of November 1974, the site opened to the public as Derby's Industrial Museum. For four decades, it served as the city's primary space for preserving the tools, machines, and stories of Derby's industrial past. The museum's presence in civic life seemed stable, but its finances were not.

  Derby City Council voted to temporarily close the museum on the 3rd of April 2015, citing the need to free funds for the Silk Mill's redevelopment and for other museums across the city. The decision had been building for years. A report by the Strategic Director of Neighbourhoods, listed as Item 7 at the Council Cabinet meeting on the 26th of October 2010, set out the arithmetic. Closing the museum would mean the loss of 8.6 full-time equivalent jobs. In return, the city would release £197,000 a year. That money would help absorb the loss of what the report called "Renaissance Programme" funding. No firm reopening date was specified, though a period of two years was discussed at the time.

  The loss of 8.6 positions reflects the financial pressures local museums faced in those years. The closure was described as temporary. In reality, six years would pass before the museum reopened.

• 3. Building the Museum of Making

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  In October 2016, a £17 million redevelopment programme began with an ambition that extended well beyond renovation. The project aimed to align the museum with the principles of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics, a framework known as STEAM. This was not simply a building upgrade; it was a philosophical reinvention of what an industrial museum could be for the twenty-first century.

  The project team adopted an integrated project insurance, or IPI, procurement model. Rather than the typical arrangement where contractors, designers, and clients each protect their own interests, the IPI model created a shared-risk alliance. Every member of the project team was bound under a single contract. The explicit aim was to remove what the team described as the "blame/claim culture" common in large construction projects.

  The COVID-19 pandemic struck midway through the programme, and some suppliers went into administration. Despite those setbacks, the alliance delivered on time and within budget. The Museum of Making opened on the 21st of May 2021.

  The Museum+Heritage Awards gave the museum a Highly Commended placement in its first year, in the category of Sustainable Project of the Year. September 2021 brought further recognition. The museum won the National Construction News Award for Project of the Year Under £25m. Five further prizes came from the Constructing Excellence East Midlands Awards. On the 10th of May 2022, the museum was announced as a finalist for the 2022 Art Fund Museum of the Year award. One design choice made during the rebuild would face its real test in October 2023.

• 4. Storm Babet

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  Before Storm Babet arrived in October 2023, the museum's architects had already thought carefully about flooding. The exhibits in the Museum of Making sat on the upper floors, a deliberate choice to limit flood damage to the collection. That foresight reduced what might otherwise have been a far worse outcome.

  Storm Babet still forced a closure. The museum shut its doors following the October 2023 flooding and did not reopen until the 25th of January 2024.

  In August 2025, the museum applied for planning permission to install flood protection in its workshop area. Whether that protection is in place before the next storm arrives is a question Derby has not yet answered.