THE financial headache afflicting a North Dorset museum has been eased thanks to £80,000 left in the will of a resident.

As a result, the immediate future of cash-strapped Blandford Museum looks rosy and secure.

Delighted museum bosses also point to an increase in attendance figures during the past year in helping to make the venue's finances more stable, and say its new security can only benefit the people of the town.

Curator Peter Andrews said: "Yes, a big worry has been removed and we'd been living a hand-to-mouth existence.

"We only have volunteers so don't have wages to pay. Yet just keeping the doors open to the public needs a certain amount of income for rates, electricity and insurance.

"Even at that basic level we needed four to six thousand pounds a year, but we're only getting about half of that from admission charges and had to make the rest up from shop sales and membership.

"Yet we just about hung on."

Some funding from the district council has been forthcoming, paying for fire regulation and disabled access modifications needed to meet legal requirements.

The town council is also giving £4,000 spread over two years.

Other funding came from occasional grants, donations and attendance, until entrance fees were scrapped.

Since then, attendance has increased five-fold.

"We felt we had to make it free because the items we have on show here belong to the people of Blandford," said Mr Andrews.

"This £80,000 will go a long way towards keeping the doors open and making sure everyone has access to the town's heritage."

The museum in Bere's Yard, Market Place, records the history of Blandford from the Stone Age to the present day. The collection includes memorabilia from the two world wars and recreations of bygone life and childhood in Blandford.

A scale model of the now-closed town railway station is currently being built as a new attraction.