MUSEUM chiefs were celebrating today after gaining a share of a multi-million pound Government cash package.

The York Museums Trust is one of five bodies in Yorkshire set to share the best part of £5.9 million over the next three years.

The head of the trust said the money would be used to attract more young people to the Yorkshire Museum, the Castle Museum and the City Art Gallery.

The York trust forms part of the Yorkshire museum "hub", along with similar organisations in Leeds, Hull, Bradford and Sheffield.

The five bodies have already shared roughly equally the first £1.18 million of the cash. But the full package, announced today by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), will also bring £1.45 million to the region in 2006-07, and £3.31 million in 2007-08.

Nick Dodd, lead officer for the Yorkshire hub, said he could not yet reveal how the bulk of the money would be divided between the five cities, because a business plan for the later phases of the spending had not been finalised.

But he said: "It will lead to a better museums service in York."

Mr Dodd, who is based in Sheffield, said he had been very impressed with what the York trust had already achieved since the city's museums and gallery left council control.

He added: "This money will help them enormously to get back to the heights they were at in the not-too-distant past." He said this was the first time regional museums had received Government funding, and he hoped for more in future years.

The York trust's chief executive, Janet Barnes, said she was delighted to have got the Government funding.

Most of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council money it had already received had gone into its education service, and this would continue with the additional funding.

"Already it has shown a great impact on our education services, because it has enabled us to get more staff who are concentrating on delivering a service to the schools.

"We are hoping for more investment to improve our services and to raise the quality of the visitor experience all round," she said.

Updated: 10:09 Monday, April 04, 2005