In this issue

MDN news

England update

Updates from Sector Support Organisations

 

MDN at MA Conference

MDN is delivering a session at the MA Conference titled Health Check: the impact of C19 on regional museums.

The session will explore how small and medium sized museums, ineligible for large government or other public grant programmes, have fared during C-19. Small, often volunteer reliant, museums are a vital part of the museum ecology. Cherished as community hubs, they are often the sole cultural provision in an area and offer respite for the people they serve.

In a lockdown where physical hyper-local provision was key, digital access saw many small museum sites increasing their online audiences by over 200%. Museum Development Network (MDN) is seeking to understand the short- and long-term impact of these seismic changes.

In an innovative new partnership, MDN and The Art Fund have distributed small grants to support the recovery phase of museums across the UK. Linked to these grants, in July Museum Development in England rolled out an organisational Health Check survey for museums which explored the impact the pandemic has had on governance, leadership, working practices, collections and audiences.

Join us on Tuesday 3 November, 1445-1545 for an exploration of these early results and emerging trends with a view of understanding these museum’s needs and priorities both now and on the longer road to recovery.

Update from England

by Isabel Wilson, Senior Manager, Museum Development

I hope that you are all ok and looking after yourselves, as well as supporting the museums in your regions. I currently have an isolating daughter at home. It is going to be a long and bumpy winter but I am taking solace from my occasional museum/heritage visits and some of the great content online.

We don’t have the full picture from the Culture Recovery Funding yet but in next month’s newsletter we will be able to provide that. A high number of museums are being supported. You’ll have seen some of the results on our website.

Please do carry on encouraging museums to apply for Project Grants – wrapping up anything planned as a project with full cost recovery built in. Isabel Churcher, Senior Manager for Museum Investment has created a webinar with useful tips and insight to help museums who are considering an application.  The webinar is available on the MDN website (no passcode required – so do send the link directly to museums who might benefit).

It’s great to see some of the results of the Art Fund/MD recovery grants that you are awarding – you’re reaching vital parts of the sector that we just don’t manage to.

Thank you also for your regular intel about museums at risk. It’s really helpful in advocating for the needs of the sector with DCMS.

There are active discussions about Accreditation underway, but no update for you yet. Again, we’ll have more information for you in next month’s newsletter.

I’m working with Charlotte Edwards and Claire Browne to arrange virtual visits for Liz Johnson, the new Director of Museums/Midlands at Arts Council in the New Year. I hope we’ll be able to organise some face to face meetings for the Spring, but if not – I’ll set up virtual visits further afield for Liz to hear about your work and meet some of your key stakeholders.

Updates from Sector Support Organisations

AIM

AIM has launched the TI Hallmark along with an updated publication and the 2020 Hallmarks Grants that are asking for applications that address this Hallmark

AIM is also working with Errol Francis from Culture& to develop some Hallmarks at Home sessions on Tackling Inequality and some case studies that will model how AIM’s members can take meaningful action.

AIM and MDN have been discussing how we can develop a joined up approach to tackling inequality in the sector and we are hoping that this might be the start of something that could be an much bigger AIM/MD programme for museums.

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AIM Biffa Award History Makers now open for expressions of interest

The AIM Biffa Award History Makers Scheme gives grants to museums, galleries and cultural facilities so that they can tell the stories of some of our lesser known historical figures. AIM is pleased to have launched the latest round of grants and is inviting expressions of interest from projects that use the life and achievements of extraordinary historical figures to inspire and educate your visitors and users today. The deadline for expressions of interest is 14 December but AIM would urge interested parties to get in touch before then – the AIM team will share feedback on EOIs giving projects the opportunity to amend and resubmit if required.

The full details, including the EOI form can be found here.

Museum Shop Sunday

It’s never been more important to get everyone supporting their favourite cultural attractions and Museum Shop Sunday is a great opportunity to do just that. There are lots of ways to take part on Sunday 29 November and make the most of this opportunity to drive sales and reach new audiences, whether in-store or online.

The Association for Cultural Enterprises has created a FREE social media strategy to help museums make the most of Museum Shop Sunday. This easy to follow document is packed with practical advice, expertise and customisable templates that you can apply to any social media campaign. There is also a free social media workshop webinar on 9 November.

For more information about Museum Shop Sunday and how to get involved click here.

Julie’s Bicycle

In the next instalment of Julie’s Bicycle’s Creative Climate Chats, we will be joined by Nick Merriman, CEO of the Horniman Museum, and Chair of the National Museum Directors’ Council environment and ecology subgroup. In 2020, the Horniman launched a Climate and Ecology Manifesto, outlining their platform for action to mitigate against the climate emergency. Join us to hear about Nick’s work creating a greener future and sustainable recovery post-pandemic for museums. The event takes place on Wednesday 4th November from 4:30pm – 5:30pm. RSVP here

Arts Marketing Association

Digital Heritage Lab: Online workshops
More free online workshops have been added for anyone working or volunteering for small to medium-sized UK heritage organisations to develop their digital skills and capacity. Upcoming workshops cover topics including accessible websites, digital marketing, social media, fundraising strategy and working with digitised collections. Funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund you can find the workshops here.

Grow Through Disruption – CEO Roundtables
As part of Grow Through Disruption, the Arts Marketing Association are running 3 free CEO roundtables to provide support for leaders and allow them to confidentially share problems and talk with other culture organisation leaders. Click here for more information.

The AMA Arts Marketing Festival is a brand-new event for 2020, which is built to be experienced entirely online, together; a space to reflect on challenges, recognise success, and process a year unlike any other.

The Festival is for arts & culture marketers at all levels, looking to deepen their knowledge and understanding of their work, and share learning from their experiences, particularly over the past 9–12 months — and it’s free for AMA members.

The AMA will be announcing the full programme details in November, but in the meantime, you can stay up to date with the latest Festival news here.

Featured Artists Coalition

FAC have created a Twitter thread encouraging artists and learning facilitators to use Scrapstores when creating home-activities for digitally excluded families.

I know museums are doing a lot of interesting things in this area and we’d like them to add to the conversation. Here’s the link.

VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums

VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums have published our report into the Museum and Heritage Access Survey 2020. You can download the report from our website and share with your networks. If you’re sharing on Twitter, please use the hashtag #BuildingBackForAll

One thing has become clear in recent months: the coronavirus pandemic has exaggerated inequality, and as we emerge, adapt and rebuild the museum and heritage sectors, we have an opportunity to do so in a more inclusive and visitor-focused way. Nearly all respondents to the survey stated that they would like to visit museums and heritage sites more regularly, and the top three things selected as enablers for this were: more access information(online and available via phone or email enquiry), more accessible events (audio-described, captioned, signed, relaxed or autism-friendly) and better staff awareness, achievable through training, CPD opportunities and above all, good leadership. None of these areas involve capital or major investment, and can all be achieved with creativity and collaboration.

October 2020 marks a decade since the Equality Act 2010 became law, time in which huge gains have been made in access and inclusion in the arts and cultural sector, bringing a positive impact to the lives of millions of Deaf, disabled and neuro-divergent people resident in the UK and those visiting. Our report also plays a role in the broader Audience Access Alliance, of which VocalEyes and Stagetext are members, which campaigns to ensure that when venues reopen they are fully inclusive for everyone and that the ten years of progress are not lost.

Archives and Records Association (UK and Ireland)

The Section for Archives and Museums is running a virtual training workshop on 20th November 2020. It covers how to safely handle, pack, store and move small and medium sized object collections and is led by Freelance Museum Consultant Anita Hollinshead. The session is ideal for people running small, voluntary and community-run museums and heritage centres.

The details and a booking link are on the ARA website

NATSCA conference

Decolonising Natural Science Collections
November 19 2020

The Natural Sciences Collections Association (NatSCA) is holding a one-day online conference exploring decolonisation work with natural science collections. Over the course of the day, there will be a range of short talks covering case studies, practical suggestions and views from the sector and beyond. There will be opportunities for live Q&A.

Miranda Lowe and Subhadra Das will be leading the proceedings as keynote speakers, presenting an update on their widely shared NatSCA paper – Nature Read in Black and White: decolonial approaches to interpreting natural history collections, available here.

Registration details and the full programme can be found here.

All are welcome, and this event is free for NatSCA members. The event will be recorded and made freely available afterwards.