AN Ilkley firm has won a major contract to design the interior of the new Leeds City Museum and interpret the collections.

Redman Design, based on the Grove, has been chosen by Leeds City Council, to carry out the work on the project costing a total of £26 million.

Redman's design team will work closely with the museum's curators to create an

exciting and informative museum that will entice visitors to explore the dramatic, high tech central arena and displays, and enjoy its stylish shop and restaurant.

"The very different spaces in the old Leeds Institute Building present an exciting design challenge," said senior partner John Redman.

He added: "In this unusual setting, we aim to create a variety of stimulating visitor

experiences, whilst respecting the unique architecture."

As well as being the cultural focus of the Civic Quarter, the new Leeds City Museum will act as a hub for the entire Leeds Museums and Galleries Service, encouraging visitors to take in all the other fascinating museum and gallery destinations that Leeds has to offer.

Redman Design has over 25 years experience in the field of museum design and has

completed more than 70 successful projects all over the UK.

Many of these have won prestigious national and regional awards. They have recently been involved with major projects in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Sheffield, Manchester, Cirencester and Canterbury.

The firm, which has been based in Ilkley for the past 12 years, employs 14 people and is run by husband and wife team John and Laury with son Bryn.

Leading UK architects Austin-Smith Lord have been appointed to develop detailed architectural designs for the museum and the Resource Centre.

The museum will be housed in the Leeds Institute building, which is currently home to the Civic Theatre. The Resource Centre will be located near the Royal Armouries museum in Clarence Dock.

This move follows the success of the

council's Stage One Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) bid of £19.5 million last summer. The bid is the largest ever in Yorkshire from the HLF and is supported by £6.5 million of match funding from Leeds Council.

A stage two bid will be submitted to the HLF in October this year with a result expected in March 2004.

Councillor Judith Blake, deputy leader of Leeds City Council and executive member for arts and heritage, said: "The proposals for a city museum and resource centre are very exciting and I'm hopeful that our second stage bid will be successful.

"Since our original museum was bombed during the Second World War, we haven't had a suitable replacement. This development would give the people of Leeds two excellent facilities where they can enjoy and learn about our rich heritage."

The museum will house the city's

nationally recognised collections telling

the story of Leeds, looking at world

cultures and the natural environment, and featuring Leeds' own 3,000 year old Egyptian Mummy.

The resource centre will provide a

state of the art repository for the important collections of the Leeds Museums service and a city-wide storage base for the artifacts when they are not on show. Members of the public and school pupils will be able to take

advantage of the education suites planned for the resource centre.

Designs for the City Museum and Resource Centre, which will provide major new visitor attractions for Leeds, will be submitted for approval to the council's executive board and the HLF later this year.

The Resource Centre is due to open in 2006, followed by the museum in 2007.