A committee of MPs has called on museums and galleries to be more business-like in generating additional revenues and not to rely on public funding. The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee also criticised museums for not knowing ?with any accuracy, what profit they make on some of their income generating activities?, observing that some have even lost money in fundraising attempts.
The Committee?s report into the methods of income generation employed by the 17 museums and galleries that are directly funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), was based on a National Audit Office (NAO) investigation into museum funding (ArtsProfessional issue 67, February 9). The NAO called for an injection of entrepreneurial skills at management level in the sector and greater sharing of fundraising information. The institutions, which include the British Museum, Tate and the National Gallery, received grant-in-aid totalling £270m in 2002/03. In the same year they succeeded in generating income of £108m from fundraising, trading activities and admission charges. The Committee has made several specific recommendations, noting that there is scope for fundraising in catering, shops, mail order and e-commerce. They demand that fundraising activities should be based on clear objectives and financial targets, with accounting systems to measure financial performance. Edward Leigh, Chairman of the Committee said, ?Earnings have been variable in recent years, and museums and galleries need to be much more business-like... Unbelievably, some museums and galleries have made losses on activities that were supposed to generate income, and have an inadequate grasp on the costs involved.?
The Committee also demands that museums set up five-year fundraising plans with clear milestones to be monitored by the DCMS. It calls on the DCMS to help museums and galleries access investment funds for new income-generating ventures in collaboration with Partnerships UK, the national body designed to promote and develop public private partnerships. Demands are also made that more individuals from the business community should be appointed as trustees and that boards should be encouraged to appoint entrepreneurial directors.
Particular concern was voiced about charges for special exhibitions. Income from paying exhibitions has doubled since the introduction of free admission to museums and galleries in 2001 and the Committee is keen to establish whether charging policies for special exhibitions are excluding people on low incomes. The DCMS has been instructed to collect data and report on the socio-economic status of visitors to paying exhibitions as well as to the museums themselves. If evidence suggests that people on low incomes tend not to visit special exhibitions, it seems likely that a review of pricing policies will be enforced, focusing on the use of concessions and methods of promoting exhibitions and targeting audiences.