Old Low Light

What Old Low Light does

Old Low Light is a UK registered charity (Charity No: 1151677) operating a heritage centre, café, and community venue inside Clifford's Fort on North Shields Fish Quay. Opened in 2015, the centre's purpose is to preserve and share the maritime and fishing heritage of North Shields and the River Tyne, housed in a building that was once one of a pair of leading lights guiding ships through the mouth of the Tyne. The centre runs a rotating exhibition programme (including the Breaking Chains exhibition on local connections to slavery and abolition), heritage walks and talks, a viewing platform, a café, and a curriculum-linked schools programme, and it supports employment training and work experience through its Steps to Employment initiative.

The operating model is community-led: a small paid staff of 5 is supported by approximately 80 active weekly volunteers (nearly 200 registered across the year), contributing roughly 24,960 volunteer hours annually. The centre is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10am to 3pm, and serves primarily visitors and tourists, schools and educational groups, members and supporters, and event hirers and community groups. Revenue is generated from a mix of £5 adult admission, £25 single / £40 joint annual memberships, top-floor venue hire (£25–£60 per hour), café sales, donations, and grants. Public-sector and trust funding has been a critical lifeline, including £25,600 from the Cultural Recovery Fund in October 2020, £24,000 from the Sir James Knott Trust in June 2021, and up to £33,300 from the Cultural Recovery Fund in March 2022.

Marketing is conducted through the charity's own website (built pro bono by Altogether Creative in 2021), email newsletter, Facebook, Twitter, and earned media including BBC Look North coverage. The centre's strategic positioning is anchored by partnerships with North Tyneside Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Fishermen's Mission, Stella Maris, and local schools. In 2025, the centre celebrated its 10th anniversary and participated in North Shields 800 celebrations, welcoming 41,257 visitors — a 24.4% increase versus 2024, materially outpacing the regional venue average of approximately 5%.

Name

Old Low Light

Legal name

Old Low Light

Website

https://oldlowlight.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Old Low Light is a UK registered charity operating a heritage centre, café, and community venue in Clifford's Fort, North Shields, preserving local maritime history through exhibitions, schools programmes, and events, supported by a small staff and a large volunteer base.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Centre / Cultural Heritage Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (71211), Historical Sites (71212)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Observation Decks & Viewing Platforms (THAJACAA), Private Cultural Immersion & Heritage Experiences (Local Hosts, Traditions) (THAJALAJ)

Keywords

• Heritage centre
• Maritime heritage
• Community space
• Local history museum
• Educational programs

Headquarters

HQ city

North Shields

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: Annual membership providing free gallery access, free entry to heritage talks, and access to viewing platform. Single membership £25, Joint membership £40 for 12 months.
2. Admission fees: £5 per adult admission to heritage gallery and exhibitions. Children under 16 free. Members free admission.
3. Room hire: Top floor venue hire for weddings, parties, meetings, classes, and community group events. Within opening hours £25/hour, outside hours £50/hour, late nights £60/hour.
4. Donations and grants: Charitable organization relying on donations, grants from trusts, and government funding including Cultural Recovery Fund, National Lottery Heritage Fund, and Sir James Knott Trust.
5. Café sales: Café serving hot and cold drinks and snacks including sandwiches, scones, and cakes. Also sells books, local crafts, and artworks.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Old Low Light operates a heritage centre inside Clifford's Fort on North Shields Fish Quay, offering a heritage gallery with rotating exhibitions on local maritime history, a café serving drinks and snacks, top-floor venue hire for events, guided heritage walks and talks, and curriculum-linked educational programs for schools. It is a registered charity (No: 1151677) supported by donations, grants, admissions, memberships, and café sales, with day-to-day delivery reliant on a small staff and around 80 weekly volunteers.

Product overview

Old Low Light is a heritage centre community space offering a unified visitor experience centered around the heritage gallery and exhibitions, café, and venue hire. The centre operates as a single integrated offering with multiple components including: a heritage gallery showcasing North Shields and Fish Quay history through rotating exhibitions; a café providing refreshments; a top floor venue available for hire for events and community use; heritage walks and talks; educational programs for schools; and a membership program. The centre opened in 2015 and relies on volunteer support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Heritage Gallery and Exhibitions Heritage gallery showcasing the history of North Shields, the Fish Quay, and the local community through rotating exhibitions and permanent displays, open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 3pm.
• Café Café serving hot and cold drinks and a range of snacks including sandwiches, scones and cakes, also selling books, local crafts, and artworks.
• Top Floor Venue Hire Top floor space available for hire for weddings, parties, workplace away days, meetings, classes, and community group events, with views of the river and Fish Quay.
• Heritage Walks and Talks Guided heritage walks around the Fish Quay and talks on local history, maritime heritage, and cultural topics, priced at ₤5 per person with half price for members.
• School Educational Programs Educational visits and workshops for schools across all key stages, covering history, geography, and maritime topics aligned with curriculum requirements.
• Annual Membership Program Annual membership offering free entry to galleries and exhibitions, free access to the viewing platform, free attendance at heritage talks, and newsletter subscription. Single membership ₤25, Joint membership ₤40.
• Viewing Platform Top floor outdoor viewing balcony offering views of the river, Collingwood's monument, and Tynemouth Priory, included with admission and free for members.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24.4% increase in visitor numbers in 2025
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• North Tyneside CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides grants and support for North Shields 800 celebrations and ongoing operations. Partner in community events and initiatives.
• Fishermen's MissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for events and commemorations including National Fishing Remembrance Day services. Fishermen's Mission provides support to fishing families and works with the centre on exhibitions and programs.
• Stella Maris (Apostleship of the Sea)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharity supporting seafarers and fishers worldwide since 1920. Partnership for National Fishing Remembrance Day events at North Shields.
• John Spence Community High SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool named after Quaker philanthropist involved in slavery abolition. Partnership for Breaking Chains exhibition with student artwork displayed at heritage centre.
• Altogether Creative StudiominorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNewcastle communications studio that designed the new website as a charitable contribution during the pandemic.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights10 records

Broad incumbents

• Beamish Museum: Larger open-air living museum in County Durham covering North East heritage. Directly comparable as a regional heritage attraction serving schools and tourists in the same catchment, though with much greater scale and resources.
• Discovery Museum, Newcastle: Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums-operated heritage site in central Newcastle covering local maritime, industrial, and social history. Comparable in thematic focus on North East maritime heritage and school visit programming.
• Souter Lighthouse (National Trust): National Trust-operated lighthouse and coastal heritage site in South Shields. Comparable as a maritime heritage visitor attraction in the North East with similar coastal/community programming.
• Tynemouth Priory and Castle (English Heritage): English Heritage site at the mouth of the Tyne, directly across from North Shields Fish Quay. Comparable as a historic landmark destination for visitors and school groups interested in the maritime and ecclesiastical history of the Tyne.
• South Shields Museum & Art Gallery: Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums site covering local history, maritime heritage, and art. Comparable in thematic focus on Tyne & Wear community history and school programming, but larger in scale.
• Great North Museum: Hancock: Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums-operated museum in Newcastle covering natural history, ancient Egypt, Greek and Roman artefacts. Comparable as a regional heritage/educational visitor attraction with school programming.

Direct peers

• Segedunum Roman Fort & Museum: Small heritage site at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall in Wallsend, North Tyneside. Comparable as a small-to-mid heritage visitor attraction in the same borough, with similar school programming and community focus.
• Arbeia Roman Fort & Museum: Reconstructed Roman fort and museum in South Shields on the south bank of the Tyne. Comparable as a heritage/archaeological site with similar scale, school programmes, and Tyne & Wear regional catchment.
• Stephenson Railway Museum: Small heritage museum in North Tyneside focused on local railway history, operated as a charity with volunteer support. Directly comparable in size, volunteer-led model, and school programming in the same borough.

Regional players

• National Maritime Museum Cornwall: Independently operated UK maritime heritage museum with similar visitor centre model, education programmes, and gallery/exhibition focus. Comparable as a regional maritime-themed heritage attraction with similar revenue mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/oldlowlight
• Xtwitter.com/oldlowlight
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/old-low-light

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Old Low Light