Are You Local?
Last updated: 02/10/2006 - 10:01
Are you 'local?' This is the question being asked of non-national museums, in a bid to boost funding and create 'flagship' centres.
A number of new regional museum 'hubs', acting as flagships for the local museums community, will be chosen as part of a strategy to modernise and support England's 2,500 regional museums.
The focus has shifted from collections care, to projects which produce other tangible benefits, including more education and learning-based projects. There will also be a greater emphasis on projects which build capacity in the sector.
Tessa Blackstone said: "Our goals are now clear. We aim to create opportunities for regional museums to excel, and to reach new audiences. "
On the bidding process, she said: "Museums will be invited to comment on the selection criteria for the hubs. Further guidance about the selection and application process along with criteria will be published and bids will be invited. Initial bids will be required by April and an invited panel of experts will be asked to consider these. At the end of this process, in June, the hubs will be announced in principle. We are determined that the selection process should be fully transparent."
The minister said the second phase of implementation would cover the realisation of the hubs. Following the outcome of the spending review, financial offers and funding agreements would be negotiated. The hubs would then need to submit strategic plans to show how they would use the money for the benefit of the museums and proposals on how governance would be modernised. The minister also announced that the Government was making a further £10 million available to allow the Designation Challenge Fund to continue for a further two years.
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