WILTSHIRE Archaeological Society which owns and runs the Wiltshire Heritage Museum in Long Street, Devizes, says it will have firm proposals for the museum's future by early next year, its 150th anniversary.

The society has for some time been looking at how to overcome the drawbacks of its cramped premises which, with its 16 different floor levels on the ground floor, is a nightmare for disabled people.

Also, much of its acclaimed Bronze Age collection, the largest outside London, cannot be put on display for lack of space.

The Market and Coastal Towns Initiative, of which Devizes is one of only two Wiltshire pilots, could provide the kind of funding which would make any development plan a reality. The society has just applied to the Market Towns Working Party, representing all local councils and other interested groups, for funding to employ a firm of consultants to look into the possibilities of a new museum.

The society is looking at three options: developing its current site in Long Street, moving to another position in Devizes town centre or identifying and acquiring an out of town location.

Archaeologist and society member Gill Swanton said: "Once we have the funding to commission the consultants it would only take a couple of months to select them and then a few months more for them to undertake their brief. By the beginning of next year, our anniversary year, we could have something on paper."

The consultants would be asked to look at all three options, identify possible sites, calculate potential visitor figures, provide costings and consult with local people to find out what their opinions are.

Mrs Swanton said: "We would like to be able to take advantage of the larger numbers of people coming to the new Stonehenge visitor centre when it is ready. After all, we are between Stonehenge and Avebury, the two parts of the World Heritage Site.

"The society is clear that it wants to keep the museum on one site."

Gordon Chancellor, the society's chief executive, said he is confident the museum would be able to attract Lottery funding for any new museum complex.