The Heritage Lottery Fund has approved a grant of £528,000 for extensive conservation works to Dundee’s famous ship, the RRS Discovery.

The total project cost is £688,000 and the balance is made up of funds from the Discovery 100 Appeal and also £10,000 from Dundee City Council.

In 2004, Dundee Heritage Trust commissioned a full structural survey of RRS Discovery to assess her condition, record areas of decay and recommend treatments and solutions.

An extensive Conservation Plan was then produced to draw up strategies to ensure the ship’s long term survival.

This project will stabilize and improve those areas of the ship identified in the Plan as in need of urgent attention.

In the simplest terms, the project is designed to prevent sea water from entering the underwater hull and fresh water from entering the inner hull.

As well as conservation work to repair decayed and damaged areas of the hull and decks, the ship’s temperature and humidity control systems and bilge pumping arrangements are to be improved.

These measures will help substantially with preventive conservation going forward.

The work involved will take two years to complete and also provides the opportunity to open up another part of the ship to the public.