Mission Statement and Function

The Centre provides New Mills people and visitors to the area with a place to learn about the growth and development of the town. One of its main functions is to tell the 'New Mills Story' as it has unfolded over the centuries. As part of this function the Centre collects, exhibits, displays, and preserves documents, material evidence and other information, whilst safeguarding this inheritance for the benefit of future generations.

The Centre is a fully Registered Museum, validated by the former Museums and Galleries Commission, now part of Resource [Museums, Libraries and Archives]. The administrator is responsible to the management committee and town council for the running of the centre The honorary curator, accesses all the documents, photographs and other donations to the Centre. The honorary curatorial adviser, appointed by the town council, is Keeper of Conservation at The Manchester Museum. The Education Adviser and schools secretary are appointed by Derbyshire County Council. The structure of the centre's administration and work is shown on a separate sheet at the end of the paper.

The Centre plays a key part in the town council's strategy to encourage visitors and tourists, and its position on the edge of the Torrs gorge, which has been conserved and enhanced for public access, is important In this respect. As part of this function, it provides information for visitors to the town and outlying area. The Centre is used for meetings, events, and exhibitions organised by the town council, Derbyshire County Council and private organisations and individuals. It provides a focus for the promotion and the provision of information regarding the town's main conservation area and it liaises with officers of the town council, the High Peak Borough Council, Derbyshire County Council, the Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust, the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, and other bodies. The Centre generates income and profit by the sale of publications, maps, trails and sundries, selling tea and coffee, arranging special events, receiving commission from exhibitions, and has a policy of publishing books on aspects of the history of the town as well as guided history trails.

In the 1970s and 1980s, the town council in association with the county council and High Peak Borough Council took measures to improve the environment and open up the Torrs for public access. The area was promoted as 'The Torrs Riverside Park - the park under the town', and it was at this time that attention was turned towards establishing a heritage centre. The establishment of New Mills Heritage and Information Centre in July 1988 - officially opened by Brian Redhead in April 1989 - was part of a wider strategy to develop the local potential for tourism and to assemble for the townspeople's benefit the story of their historical heritage.