Final push to get gallery money

George Frederic Watts was aged in his 80s when he died in 1904

A final push is being made to raise the last £500,000 that would enable an art gallery in Surrey to claim more than £4m of lottery money.

The Watts Gallery, in Compton, near Guildford, houses the works of Victorian painter GF Watts.

But director Perdita Hunt said it suffered from problems like a leaky roof and a lack of disabled access.

The gallery's own fund-raising has three months left to match a £4.3m award from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

It is all part of a wider £10m Hope Appeal to secure the future of the gallery and its collections.

First opened to the public in April 1904, it is dedicated to a permanent exhibition of Watts' works.

Public pride

The gallery was runner-up in the BBC's Restoration Village programme in 2006, which asked the public to vote on a building they wanted to see completely restored.

And a recent online poll named it the attraction that people in the South East are most proud of.

"We have to save this building," Ms Hunt said.

"Watts was a great artist and he gave us this building, this collection.

"He himself gave to causes, now it's time for us to honour him.

"We still have rain coming through the roof... [and] the collection itself, the paintings, the sculptures, the drawings, are suffering in these conditions."

Ms Hunt said work was also needed to make the entire gallery wheelchair-accessible, and a more convenient place to visit for car users.