People across the country will soon benefit from a £4 million boost for regional museums and galleries through the joint DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund.
The £4 million DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund is made up of £2 million in match funding and provides support to local and regional museums to improve displays, enhance collections care and make exhibitions more accessible to visitors. Over the last 20 years, more than 440 projects have benefitted from over £50 million in funding.
In the previous round of funding, organisations including People’s History Museum in Manchester received over £200,000 for their Welcome Project, which focussed on key improvements to the building as identified in an independent access audit. In line with the museum’s commitment to improving access for all, the project installed a new accessible front door, full toilet renovation including installation of a changing places facility, accessible furniture and updated all signage around the museum.
The Food Museum in Suffolk received more than £89,000 in funding for the Abbot’s Hall estate and its listed gardens, which feature a canal with an early 18th-century fishing lodge. The lodge had been inaccessible to visitors since the 1990s due to the deteriorating condition of the access bridge. With support from the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund, the museum built a new bridge that allows visitors to access the island.
Experience Barnsley Museum used over £37,000 of funding from the previous round for their Chamber of Treasures project which transformed an underused space in the permanent main gallery with new displays and interpretation of social history collections created with Barnsley’s communities. The project improved access and interpretation for people with disabilities to enhance visitor experiences, whilst improving care of the collection.
Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive of the Wolfson Foundation, said: “Museums and galleries play a vital role in deepening our understanding of the past and our shared culture. For over twenty years we have worked with DCMS to support museums and galleries as they improve access and enable more visitors to discover, understand and enjoy our country’s remarkable collections. We’re delighted to continue our partnership with this new round of funding.”
Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant said: “We want everyone, everywhere to be able to enjoy culture and the arts – and this fund helps us achieve that mission.
“It is a great example of combining public funding with private philanthropy to help deliver on our Plan for Change by ensuring that people who may find accessing museums and galleries difficult have the opportunity to enjoy the incredible collections we have on offer in this country.”
From today (Friday 5 September), the fund is open for applications until Friday 14 November.
Full guidance, including eligibility criteria and details of how to apply can be found on GOV.UK.
Top image: Courtesy The Food Museum
