VOLUNTEERS are being sought to fill the posts of chairman and trustees for a new charitable trust that will take over the day-to-day running of Witney’s Cogges Manor Farm Museum.

Oxfordshire County Council is looking for people with a range of skills to breath new life into the attraction, as the museum has been operating at a loss of £250,000 per year.

Martyn Brown, heritage and arts officer for the county council, said whoever volunteered would have to be prepared for a challenge.

He said: “There is no doubt that in the first few months, a year even, it’s going to be quite a demanding role.

“But they will be giving an enormous contribution to their local community and that is something that they will find enormously rewarding.”

The trust will take over from the county council on April 1 next year, and will be responsible for managing its budget of £160,000 per year until 2012, and a one-off investment of £250,000.

It will also be responsible for overseeing the museum application for Lottery funding, as it seeks to get between £1.5m and £2m to help finance various projects.

Skills the council are looking for include backgrounds in business, education, marketing and agriculture as well as property, law, social enterprise, finance, culture and human resources.

A council spokesman added: “Basically, anyone who is really keen to see Cogges prosper and can bring some skills with them.”