An award-winning museum in Kendal which faced permanent closure late last year is reopening to visitors this summer.
The Quaker Tapestry Museum will welcome visitors every Wednesday from May 6 until the end of August thanks to a a team of volunteers from Kendal Friends Meeting.
Located at the Friends Meeting House on Stramongate, the museum recently won the Cumbria Tourism Board's Small Visitor Attraction of the Year award for 2025.
A spokesperson said: “The Quaker Tapestry is a celebration of over three hundred years of Quaker insights and experiences, embroidered in narrative Crewel work on 77 panels of specially woven wool cloth.
"Visitors to the Museum will be able to see over 40 of these panels and marvel at the design, colour and detailed techniques used by over 4,000 people from 15 countries, aged 3 to 93, exploring the history of Quakers and their work in areas of peace, social reform, trade, industry, science, education and beyond.”
The panels explore the history and influence of Quakers in areas including social reform, trade, industry, science, and education.
Admission to the museum is free.
Visitors are also being invited to bring small textile crafts, such as embroidery, knitting, or crochet, to work on in the communal space.
Refreshments will be available on site at the Garden Café, which will be open Wednesday to Saturday from 10am to 3.30pm.
The museum’s long-term future was made uncertain last year when the news broke that it was set to shut due to financial pressures.
A petition to save the museum gathered dozens of signatures in just a few days.
The petition stated: "Kendal’s Quaker Meeting House, which houses the museum, is a lively building used by the whole community for events, workshops, and training sessions and it is still a place of worship for Quakers today.
"This will all end with the closure.”
Concerns were also raised about the fate of the tapestries with the petition noting that the museum’s professional staff "possess the skills and knowledge to take care of and conserve the panels."
A statement to trustees last year cited rising wage bills and operating costs as the main reasons behind the closure.
The statement said: "The decision to find a new future for the Quaker Tapestry has not been taken lightly and comes after a thorough review of our financial position and operational realities.
"Our wage bill alone, influenced by rising staff costs, National Insurance, and cost of living increases, now exceeds £125,000."
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