A new report from the independent Regional Museums Task Force, examining the problems facing regional museums, has persuaded Arts Minister Tessa Blackstone of the necessity to reorganise the structure of public museums and galleries in England. The proposal is to create a centre of excellence in each of the nine English regions, consisting of a leading museum and up to three partner museums which would work together to provide leadership and set new standards in the museum sector. Resource: the Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries has been charged with drawing up implementation plans.
The report, ?Renaissance in the Regions: A New Vision for England?s Museums? concludes that, in spite of many examples of good work in the regions, there are inconsistencies and missed opportunities resulting from the fragmented nature of the sector, and from financial pressures which lead to low morale, staff shortages, a decline in scholarship and weak leadership. It recommends that the government invests around £265m over 5 years to revitalise England?s regional museums. The new money is intended to be additional to present local authority and other funding, and will be used to raise core staffing levels by 25%, create new access, outreach and education programmes, finance new exhibition initiatives, and develop new information technology resources. Welcomed by the Visual Arts and Galleries Association as an ?opportunity for the Government to reap substantial returns, and invest in the backbone of the country?s cultural and creative heritage?, the report forecasts that visits to regional museums could double, to 100,000 visits each per year.
The Task Force which developed the proposals was formed by then Secretary of State for Culture, Chris Smith, following concerns expressed in 2000 about the state of regional museums and galleries. It involved leading members of local authority museums services as well as high profile museum and gallery directors, who managed a consultation exercise with nearly 400 people involved with the sector, making this the one of the largest consultations of museum and gallery personnel ever undertaken in the UK. Nine working parties were set up to examine specific issues. The working papers and final report, are available at http://www.resource.gov.uk