Museum aims to repair bathing hut

A Suffolk museum is aiming to raise £14,000 to restore a 150-year-old bathing hut which was used to preserve the dignity of female swimmers.

Aldeburgh Museum wants to repair the rare Victorian hut, which was once a common site on the seafront.

The huts were used by women as a place to change into swimming costumes before being lowered into the sea by a cradle.

As the swimmers were lowered into the water, modesty screens protected them from public view.

The hut, which has more recently been used for storage, is missing the undercarriage and wheels which allowed it to be pushed up and down the beach.

Its windows and doors are also in need of replacement.

Roger Warren, district councillor for Aldeburgh, said: "It's an interesting relic of the past and it would be good to restore it to its original condition."