In 1979 Blythe House was formally acquired by the Government from the Savings Bank for £6.5m,[REF] with the intention that it be used for storage by museums and galleries.
The Victoria and Albert Museum (from previous stores at Perivale; Leighton House; Ruskin Avenue, Kew - the present site of The National Archives; and Hounslow), including the Archive of Art and Design; the Beatrix Potter Collections; the V&A Theatre and Performance Archives; and the V&A's own institutional archive [REF].