Charles Darwin's former home could become heritage centre

The news comes after it was revealed that the Valuation Office Agency, which is currently based at the property on The Mount, Shrewsbury, is to move out of the building.

The Valuation Office Agency is only a tenant of the building, which is actually owned by property investors Mapeley.

Shrewsbury architect Robert Oak has said the site could become a museum celebrating Darwin's life in the town, but now mayor Jane MacKenzie has taken it a step further.

She said: "I feel we should have more to do with Charles Darwin in the town.

"I've been working with the Business Improvement District, civic society and councillors to move in the direction which will make a big difference culturally but for tourism too.

"We're trying to get together a group of interested parties to move this forward.

"We're going to be involving the Darwin International Institute for the Study of Compassion.

"I'm really passionate about this.

"The fact is he was born here, grew up here and developed his interest in nature here, and we're just not making enough of it .

"If we did it like Stratford with Shakespeare we would be almost a world centre."

Councillor MacKenzie recently travelled to America and said that when she travels abroad she asks people if they have heard of Shrewsbury.

"Wherever I travel I ask people if they've heard of Shrewsbury and they never have, but they have heard of Charles Darwin," she added.

"If we could tie the town together it would be great as Charles Darwin is a global brand.

"There would be room for a museum there possibly but I would envisage it more as a heritage centre in memory of Charles Darwin to make it open to the public and tie it in with what Shropshire Wildlife is doing with Darwin's garden.

"I want to make it a must-go tourist stop-off point and tie it in with the Darwin tour around the town.

"That way people can stay in Shrewsbury, see where Darwin lived and do the tour of the town."