A massive cash injection of nearly £1 million is set to radically transform a Uttoxeter museum into a major tourist attraction.

Redfern's Cottage bosses are celebrating after being granted £988,400 from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The money will see the Carter Street museum's efforts to preserve and explore Uttoxeter's rich history reach new heights.

The cash will pay for a new café, a special area dedicated to "community life" and interactive galleries on domestic life, the civil war, markets and the making of the modern town.

Visitors to the 400-year-old building will also be able to enjoy a new sensory garden when the project is complete.

The funding was unlocked thanks to a £30,000 donation from JCB - the most successful business ever to emerge from Uttoxeter.

Company chairman Lord Bamford said: "Uttoxeter is synonymous with the history and ongoing success of JCB.

"It’s where the business was founded and is the home town for many of our employees and their families.

"Preserving the town’s history and ensuring future generations appreciate its vibrant and distinctive past are important and we are delighted to pledge JCB’s ongoing support to the museum."

The digger giant's donation meant museum chiefs had met the lottery fund's condition of raising £50,000, which had to be met before its grant was released.

Redfern’s Cottage chairman David Parkes said: "Redfern’s Cottage is all about sharing what is great, interesting, quirky, strange and distinctive about Uttoxeter.

"To secure the National Lottery funding from the fund (HLF), we needed to raise well over £50,000, which is no mean feat for an organisation that relies on volunteers.

"We are indebted to all our donors, but to JCB in particular for this generous donation which has enabled us to reach the target and ensure the community of Uttoxeter will benefit from a whole host of exciting activities and events."

Pictured left to right is JCB chief operating officer Mark Turner; Redfern's Cottage project manager Darowen Jones; trustee Janet Dean, secretary and trustee Pam McNamee; chairman and trustee Nick Wigg; and treasurer and trustee Jonathan Prutton receiving a £30,000 donation from JCB at the museum in Uttoxeter
Pictured left to right is JCB chief operating officer Mark Turner; Redfern's Cottage project manager Darowen Jones; trustee Janet Dean, secretary and trustee Pam McNamee; chairman and trustee Nick Wigg; and treasurer and trustee Jonathan Prutton receiving a £30,000 donation from JCB at the museum in Uttoxeter

Vanessa Harbar, head of the Heritage Lottery Fund West Midlands, said: "Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, Uttoxeter Heritage Trust can take a vital step towards restoring Redfern’s Cottage.

"As well as securing the future of this historic building, the project is creating some fantastic opportunities for communities and volunteers and we look forward to seeing that continue."

Redfern’s Cottage volunteers work with school and college students, art projects to help local people affected by mental health issues and archeological digs that have uncovered artefacts from the town’s Medieval history.

The museum is named after historian Francis Redfern, who lived in the cottage housing the facility in the mid-1800s.

He was integral in documenting Uttoxeter's history up to that point.

More information is online at www.redfernscottage.org