Urgent and substantial repairs are needed to one of Suffolk's most precious and historic buildings to ensure its future.

Leiston Long Shop museum has suffered from limited maintenance over the past 40 years and now action is needed to make the property weather-tight to protect its collections and allow the museum to continue without further worry.

The grade-two listed Long Shop - one of Suffolk's leading attractions - is housed in the former Garrett engineering factory, the world’s first purpose-built assembly line building.

Now a schedule of work has been drawn up which will include re-tiling the roof - using the original pantiles where possible - to allow the roof to be insulated to improve the building's thermal performance.

Double-glazed roof lights and roof lanterns will be installed and windows will be repaired where possible, and in some cases, replaced, along with re-pointing, repairs to a fire escape door and stairs, while inside timber rafters, beams and wall plates will be repaired, and the original timber block flooring will also be taken up, resanded and levelled and re-laid.

East Anglian Daily Times: Work is needed to make the buildings water-tightWork is needed to make the buildings water-tight (Image: (c) copyright citizenside.com)

Similar work will take place in the Richard Garrett Hall, a storm water tank will be installed beneath the steam yard with an electric pump and drainage to deal with problems encountered after heavy or prolonged rainfall, and gutters will be improved.

In documents submitted to East Suffolk Council, RH Partnership Architects, for the Leiston Long Shop Museum, said: "Due to the limited maintenance and shortcomings of previous repairs works in the past, the museum is in need of urgent and substantial repairs to ensure that the museum is able to continue operating into the future.

"The museum and its buildings give a valuable insight into a unique piece of history and it is important that this is preserved.

East Anglian Daily Times: The project will secure the attraction's futureThe project will secure the attraction's future (Image: Rachel Edge)

"The proposed scheme of repair will ensure that the buildings are watertight and sound, ensuring that artefacts are protected within the buildings and that the museum is able to function without worry of a further decline in the external fabric of the buildings, or of further problems of water ingress following rain storms."