Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
OF LOCAL AUTHORITY
MUSEUMS: AN ADVENTURE
WITHOUT A MAP?
About this research
Cuts to museum funding over the past 5 years have raised questions about the future of
local authority museums. A popular option for local authorities is the alternative service
delivery model. This catch-all phrase refers to a broad spectrum of approaches to delivering
public museum services. The most prevalent model is the museum trust. However,
community managed museums are increasingly being considered as part of the changing
future of Englands museum services. The current picture of community managed museums
is incredibly complex. The legal form that these organisations take is varied, as is the
process by which a local authority museum transfers to another body. There are large
variations in support available to organisations, and in the level of responsibility that they
accept.
This research examines how the turn to community is framed, discussed and experienced
by council employees, councillors and the diverse range of individuals managing these public
spaces. Particular attention is paid to the process of management transfer. The central
argument is although these changes are often framed in terms of broadening participation in
the museum, responding better to local need and enhancing the experience of audiences,
the research shows that the imperative is overwhelmingly financial, that the process is ad-hoc
and uncoordinated and that the outcomes are precarious. As a result the research argues for
a more honest appraisal of the difficulties of establishing community-managed museums,
one that takes into account questions of fairness, impact on audiences and employees, and
Abofunctioning of local government in relation
the deeper question of the appropriate role and
to public spaces such as museums.
Key findings
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viewed negatively by the majority of
respondents.
In a subversion of the national rhetoric,
and in many ways of their own policies
and media statements, the people
interviewed recognised that it was simply
not a priority for individuals to get
involved in delivering services. Either
they were too busy dealing with a
challenging financial landscape of their
own, or they were just not interested.
The principle of involving a broader
range of people in the delivery and
design of museum services was
acknowledged and welcomed on a
number of occasions, however many
respondents expressed regret at having
to shift responsibility onto individuals
and organisations under these
circumstances. The term communitymanagement or other cognate terms
found in the policy documents and the
media may appear to link these
developments to broader reconceptualisations of the museum as
spaces for participation, democratic
decision-making and the blurring of
boundaries between insider and outsider,
but this link exists only on the surface.
Although there is potential for this type
of practice to be initiated by new
organisations, it is certainly not part of
the essential criteria.
This research has analysed the process
by which three museum buildings were
transferred to bodies other than the local
authority. These were all difficult,
challenging buildings in need of
significant investment, both in terms of
restoration, improvements to displays
and to facilities provision. They were too
difficult for the local authority to cope
with. Although this is understandable
given the current financial climate, there
are serious questions to be asked about
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because they do not feel capable of, or
do not have an interest in the museum
aspect of the building. Second, and of
greater concern, local authorities need to
be attuned to the possibility that it is the
buildings function as a museum that
communities value, not just as a building
that is open to the public. The long-term
consequences of removing collections
and museum activity from a building that
forms an important part of the imagined
public realm needs further consideration.
One of the threads that tied together the
experiences of individuals who became
involved in the process of transfer (it
should be noted that the involvement of
community members progressed along
vastly different lines) was a feeling that
to manage a museum requires certain
capabilities and skills that individuals
without training and/or experience
cannot possess. In short, the learning
curve from one profession to the
museum profession was perceived to be
sufficiently steep to make community
management of museums more
challenging than of community halls, or
swimming pools.
This research suggest this is one of the
reasons why the current evidence base
for community management of museums
is so small, and why the level of interest
local authorities receive when they
advertise for organisations to come
forward is so low. It may also explain the
many examples of museums that have
closed before community management
was explored. This suggests that the
traditional conceptualisation of the
museum as a sanctuary of expert and
authoritative knowledge and truth acts
as a barrier to the development of
organisations who, unbeknown to
themselves and many museum
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For other local authorities, and for ACE
considering if and when to support local
authorities in exploring this option, an
immediate conversation needs to be had
regarding what is required of community
organisations. What are the limits of the
relationship between LAs and community
organisations? What do LAs and
audiences want: to keep museums open
or to keep public spaces open? In a time
of scarcity, audiences need to be given
the opportunity to debate, discuss and
share what services, buildings, functions
they prioritise. At the moment, local
authorities are making these decisions
for them and often behind closed doors.
There would also be a value in reexamining where these opportunities are
advertised: do the majority of the public
know how to navigate their councils
website, do they read the local paper or
attend public meetings? Anecdotal
evidence suggest only a few small
minority do.
Needless to say, provision should be
made to facilitate the training and
development of organisations and
individuals who have the potential to
function as museum managers. Without
adequate community support it is going
to be (on the whole, not always) the most
affluent and able communities who are in
the driving seat.
In the instance that no resources are
available for this type of work, ACE
should continue to fund the Museum
Development Officers and encourage
them to develop closer working
relationships with newly formed
organisations. This research found these
connections, and formal and informal
mentoring to be a crucial factor in
making individuals feel supported and
confident to undertake the museum
work they felt underprepared for. In a
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continue, and the question remains as to
whether these new forms of local
authority museum management
represent a cynical, temporary approach
to staving off museum closure, or
whether they will be early examples of a
reconstruction of their entire
architecture, and a re-categorisation of
what it means to be a museum
professional.
Brief methodology
This research is based on three case
studies of local authorities in England.
The research is based on analysis of
documentation, interviews with council
officers, councillors, and members of the
community and participant observations
conducted between 2013 and 2015.
Acknowledgements
Thanks are due to all of the individuals
who participated in the wider research
project that this reports stems from.
Their generous sharing of time and
insights made the research possible. This
work was supported by the Arts and
Humanities Research Council.
This summary draws on a more detailed
report by the author which is available on
request.
Release date: August 2015
References
Cameron, D. (2010) 'Big Society Speech',
19th July,
http://www.number10.gov.uk/news/spee
ches-andtranscripts/2010/07/bigsociety-speech53572 last accessed 12th August 2015.
Macmillan, R. (2010) The third sector
delivering public services: an evidence
review. Third Sector Research Centre:
Birmingham.
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