Half a century of history could be lost as a museum in Tilford could close within weeks if it doesn’t raise £150,000.

Concerns are growing for the future of the Rural Life Living Museum as rising energy costs and reduced visitor numbers have hit hard.

Its unique assortment of objects from everyday life was collected by Madge and Henry Jackson in 1968 and they opened their garden to the public in 1973.

Bosses fear the attraction’s collection will have to be sold off and offered to other museums if the worst case scenario is realised.

The site would also be at risk of being snapped up by developers as it is unprotected land, with the museum, garden and legacy of Madge and Henry being at real risk, with events like Weyfest and Village at War being forced to relocate.

Rising energy costs, decreased footfall and the impact of the cost of living crisis have created cashflow problems for the business.

The museum predicts that if every onsite visitor donated £3.75 or that every online follower donated £17.25 they would hit their target.

The museum has already attempted to curb the effect of the rising expenditure by restructuring staff and making redundancies while all maintenance has been cut back.

The sale of building which houses the original collection was also considered before being later ruled out due to the harm it would have on the future of the museum.

To help save the museum head to https://cafdonate.cafonline.org/26592