Our Ambition

Historic general photo of Newlyn Harbour filled with different fishing and trading boats (Billy Stevenson Collection)

Newlyn FISH Centre – a landmark venue for telling Newlyn’s story

Our ambition is to create a venue, provisionally named ‘Newlyn FISH Centre’, where Newlyn’s important and fascinating past, present and future story can be told.

As well as a ‘must-see’ for visitors, we are clear that we want the FISH Centre to be community-based, a welcome hub for local people, including those who have worked or are still involved in the fishing industry.

Newlyn FISH Centre will be…

A spectacular new venue located right at the heart of one of the UK’s most significant fishing ports. The sights, smells and sounds of life at the harbour and its industry will be captured in this engaging cultural and educational experience.

It will cover the breadth of our relationship with the sea; from a thousand years ago to the cutting edge of Climate Change and sustainable fishing practices. Take a journey through the past to appreciate the present and prepare for the future.

A working destination, committed to conserving and sharing its internationally important collection of artefacts, FISH will be housed within one of Newlyn’s most significant historic buildings, made accessible to all for the first time in its history.

We will tell the stories behind the community, the heritage and the future, actively involve our visitors and making learning and research a fun experience for all ages, ensuring this rich heritage continues, and preserves the industry and the marine environment on which it thrives, for future generations. A great place for the entire family to explore!

You can read a brief summary of Newlyn’s history here, and you can find key events and themes relating to its past, present and future by clicking on the buttons below.

Newlyn’s story will be told using…

  • interactive displays of historical objects and images (including collections from some of Newlyn’s most prominent fishing families)
  • demonstrations and workshops of traditional local skills and crafts (such as net & crab/lobster-pot making, knots and splices, boat building, fish mongering & cooking, copper working, painting & pottery)
  • interactive displays covering present and future aspects and issues (such as sustainable fishing, marine pollution & conservation, affordable housing for local people, climate change)
  • programme of public and community events (story-telling, talks, discussions, films, guided tours) focused on aspects of Newlyn’s past, present and future

Newlyn FISH Centre will include…

  • flexible exhibition, event and meeting space(s)
  • reference library & archive store
  • educational and training facilities

Potential revenue streams may include…

  • shop & cafe
  • restaurant specialising in locally-caught seafood
  • offices and work space housing fishing-related organisations and businesses
  • perhaps some affordable accommodation for local people

Location for Newlyn FISH Centre…

After commissioning an initial architect’s (RIBA 0) report and testing the views of local people through an online survey, our chosen location for Newlyn FISH Centre is the port’s Former Ice Works.

“Whether a lifelong mariner or someone who has never before set foot on a boat, at Newlyn FISH Centre you will find relevance and personal connections to the stories and have some fun in the process. Enjoy a locally sourced seafood meal overlooking the harbour and visit our fabulous gift shop too.” Rich Stever (Founding member of Newlyn FISH Trust)