Paisley: Secret Collection

Located on Paisley High Street, the museum store was made by converting the basement of a vacant 1970s department store unit. The building is now a state-of-the-art storage facility, safely housing the Renfrewshire Council museum collections in specially climate controlled conditions. The intention is that the prime central location will encourage the public to visit the facility and view the extensive museum collection. The building facilitates visits from different groups, such as school trips and researchers, further opening the collection to the wider public.

The store is entered through a narrow yellow entrance, which then descends into a deep, dark foyer via a yellow staircase. This entrance is misleading in regards to the size of the stores, which is revealed when entering the long corridor. Structural alterations included a new access stair and lift shaft installed from the ground floor down into the basement, an external canopy at the rear loading bay, extensive tall blockwork walls to the room layouts, new wall openings to improve natural light and drainage alterations.