UK Culture Vultures
Last updated: 02/10/2006 - 11:40
Visitor numbers are soaring at Britain's free National Museums as the UK goes culture crazy.
Visitor numbers to the formerly-charging national museums and galleries have risen by almost 70% since entry charges were scrapped.
New figures show that visitors have increased over the last 12 months by 111% at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), 100% at the Science Museum, and 81% at the Natural History Museum.
Outside London, other branches of the national collections have seen visitor numbers rise by an average of 55%, for example, admissions to the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside have risen by 79%, and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester by 63%. The Royal Armouries collections in Leeds and Fort Nelson in Portsmouth have seen admissions rise by 24% and 54% respectively.
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Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell commented on the findings. She says: "The boom in visitor numbers, following the Government's investment to allow all visitors to go free, is excellent news. It is a tribute to the energy and imagination of the museums themselves, and a clear rebuttal to those who say the people of this country are not interested in 'serious' culture and learning. We are committed to this policy, and additional funding has now been made available to all the Department for Culture, Media and Sport-sponsored museums and galleries to allow it to continue."
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