A project to conserve the world’s oldest complete 19th / early 20th century mine site has been awarded £1,121,400 from the Heritage Lottery Fund .

The aim of the project is to conserve all the core buildings at King Edward Mine, and refurbish the derelict Assay Office as a new café and community hub and the Boiler House as a new exhibition space.

The funding, thanks to a successful partnership application from Cornwall Council and King Edward Mine Ltd will also enable King Edward Mine to employ two paid part-time staff and deliver events, activities and training for local schools, families, visitors, special interest groups and volunteers, working in partnership with other community organisations.

King Edward Mine is situated on the outskirts of Camborne, near the villages of Troon and Beacon,  and is the oldest complete 19th/ early 20th century mine site left in the world.

Almost all the mine buildings survive, and to a "remarkable degree" retain their appearance and character of about 1907, when Camborne School of Mines equipped the mine’s mill with the most up to date surface machinery of the time, including the Californian Stamps battery that had been exhibited at the Paris Exposition in 1900.

In preparation for opening the mine as a museum in 2005, a group of individuals, who later became King Edward Mine Ltd, expertly restored and, where possible, brought back much of this machinery into working order. The Mill now houses the most complete collection of tin dressing plant in Europe, with many items being rare or unique survivals.

King Edward Mine is traversed by the Great Flat Lode Mineral Tramways multi-use trail, a popular route around Carn Brea for walks, cyclists and horse riders. The new café, which will be offered as a franchise, and the additional car parking and improvements to the Events Field, will help King Edward Mine to become the ‘Gateway to the Great Flat Lode’, providing an ideal location for individuals and groups to start their exploration of what is described as the best surviving mining landscape within the Cornish Mining World Heritage Site.

The café has also received funding from the Architectural Heritage Fund’s Challenge Fund for Historic Buildings at Risk, generously funded by English Heritage and by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation.

King Edward Mine will remain open to the public as normal throughout the project’s building conservation phase, with the new café and exhibition opening in June 2016. For all information on visiting King Edward Mine, please go to their website: www.kingedwardmine.co.uk.

King Edward Mine will be advertising for a part-time Site Officer later in December and more information will provided on the café franchise opportunity early in 2015 and on the Participation Officer position at the beginning of 2016.

Nerys Watts, head of the Heritage Lottery Fund South West, said: “King Edward Mine is the oldest complete early 20th century mine site left in Cornwall and an important reminder of the area’s long and proud mining heritage. Today’s HLF support will enable Cornwall Council to conserve some of the most historic parts of the site as well as vastly improving the visitor offer via a new café and community space for all to enjoy.”

Since opening in 2005, this small team of dedicated volunteers have created an award-winning museum at King Edward Mine, attracting increasing numbers of visitors and growing in importance to the local community. The struggle was always raising funds to restore the deteriorating historic buildings and to put the site on a firmer financial footing. In 2009, the Council acquired King Edward Mine in recognition of its importance within Cornwall’s World Heritage Site.

Kevin Baker, chairman of  King Edward Mine Ltd, said: “This is really great news. King Edward Mine Museum was created by the vision of a few volunteers who have over the years restored the tin processing machinery in the Mill, now unique examples of their type, and who have striven to preserve the site for future generations.

"We are very proud of the fact that the museum is award-winning and that so many of our visitors learn about the heritage of the site, but we took on buildings already in very poor condition which has limited what we’ve been able to do to develop the site’s potential. Without this support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, we could never have raised funds locally for the conservation of the core buildings, nor indeed for creating a new café and exhibition space.

"We are now hoping to attract more volunteers to become part of King Edward Mine’s future, and that more people in the community will be encouraged to come and enjoy the site and take part in the host of events and activities that we are planning. ”