A £1.4 million project to redevelop the top floor of the Fusilier Museum is on course for completion in October.

Work to refurbish the upstairs of the historic Grade II listed building in Moss Street, a Heritage Lottery-funded project, is now under way.

The top floor will be home to the Minden Suite, a state-of-the-art conference and events space, the Quartermaster’s Store, a new exhibition room, and the relocated Fusilier Archive.

There will also be improved storage and new learning facilities and space for school workshops and activities.

The original chimney will be used to form a new lift to the upper floor.

York contractor William Anelay, which built the museum’s new entrance when it was opened in the former Arts and Crafts Centre in 2009, will carry out the work.

Helen Smith, general manager at the Fusilier Museum, said: “We are so pleased with the progress of the build so far.

“William Anelay has been able to work through a variety of complex scenarios which has enabled us to stay on schedule for our opening later in the year. We are all incredibly excited to see the finished product, and we’re all feeling positive about what the future holds for the museum.”

The opening of the Quartermaster’s Store is scheduled to be in time for the October half-term and there will be a programme of events to celebrate the top floor’s launch.

Tim Donlon, of William Anelay, said: “Our biggest challenge is the integration of the original chimney to form a new passenger lift to open up the upper floor for educational and resource purposes.

"This has been an enormous task requiring a great deal of planning and logistics to remove and support the remaining masonry of this historic structure in the middle of Bury.”