A PERMANENT home for the Concorde is a step closer after the trust behind a new aerospace centre at Filton Airfield was awarded almost £5million.

The Bristol Aero Collection Trust was given a grant of £4.7million by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to create the centre at the airfield.

The new centre will tell the story of Bristol’s aerospace industry from 1910 to the present day and into the future, displaying several important heritage collections.

It will create a permanent home where people can access Concorde 216, the last British Concorde assembled at the Filton site which led the design, testing and production of the supersonic airliner.

The total cost of the project is £16 million and Bristol Aero Collection Trust has already received significant pledged support from BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, Airbus, South Gloucestershire Council as well as a number of local and national charitable trusts and major donors.

Lloyd Burnell, project director of the trust said: “We’re delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded us this grant. The Bristol Aerospace Centre at Filton, which provides a permanent home for Concorde, will be a fantastic attraction for the region and provide enormous learning and volunteering opportunities for a wide range of people, from school pupils to local groups and retired workers.

“The fascinating collections, many of which will be made accessible to the public for the first time, include thousands of important objects and nationally-significant archives which trace over 100 years of technical innovation and engineering brilliance, along with the social history of the people who've worked in the industry".

The project will conserve 9.5 acres of Filton Airfield, along with two listed hangars dating back to World War 1 and described by English Heritage as ‘the most complete of any in existence’.

These spaces will be refurbished to provide a first class aerospace industrial museum with hands-on 'making and doing' activities, interactive galleries, learning centre and workshops.

The project will also provide facilities such as meeting places, outdoor play areas and event spaces.

In addition, a major new building will create a permanent home for Concorde which will be presented in an exciting and dynamic way, along with a 'futures' technology exhibition, corporate facilities and lecture theatre.

Nerys Watts, head of Heritage Lottery Fund South West, said: “From First World War fighter planes to the ground-breaking Concorde, British aviation was born and bred at Filton Airfield.

“HLF’s investment of £4.7m will breathe new life into this site, making it a centre of excellence where the industry’s heritage can be truly celebrated. People have a deep connection and pride in the technical innovations that have come out of the Bristol area, and we particularly welcome plans to record the unique stories of the airfield and its workforce.”

Iain Gray, chairman of the trust added, “Concorde was largely designed and built at Filton, with the first British flight taking off in 1969 and the final supersonic flight of any Concorde in the world landing at the airfield on 26 November 2003.

“She has been tremendously well cared for by Airbus in the intervening time but this grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund is a great anniversary present for this icon of British design and innovation.

“On behalf of us all we are very grateful to the Heritage Lottery Fund trustees, to all our funders and hardworking volunteers for their commitment which will see the Bristol Aerospace Centre become a reality in 2017.”