1 Warren Hill Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk. IP12 4DT
2-5 October 2008
This really well-run event was arranged by the Friends of Penlee Art Gallery and Museum. Area co-ordinators started off the previous evening with dinner at our sea front conference hotel and next morning had a meeting at which we were able to chew over some of the problems and ideas from around the country. We discussed what exactly each coordinator should be doing: education about the wider museum scene or just progressing some of the information that gets into the BAFM Journal. We agreed that a Public Relations Officer could help promote BAFM’s role and that we had to ‘sharpen up our act’ in every way. You may have read the article in the BAFM Summer Journal ‘Friendship is like money, easier made than kept’ by Carolyn Dalton from Doncaster Museum Service. This seems to have provoked many members; there will be at least one response in the next Journal. We enjoyed a Civic Reception at our host museum. There were two keynote speeches. Kate Brindley Director of Bristol Museums spoke about how a museum can help define the sense of place. We went into group discussions and brought back a wide range of responses around our need to represent the local community and support our museums. Some of us may hold longer local knowledge than our present staff. Joining a Friends group can be the way into a new community. Threats like Council budget cuts and political changes were part of these discussions. After the formalities of the Annual General Meeting the awards in the best newsletter competition were made. One of our Eastern Friends groups won a runner-up award: congratulations to Friends of the Harlow Museum! Later, we had a challenging talk by Sir Neil Cossons, past Director of Ironbridge Gorge Museum and past Chairman of English Heritage who argued that museums should be leaders helping to set the cultural agenda. He urged us to think about the role of Friends and of our national organisation. The social side of the conference went well with an after dinner talk by Jonathan Griffin from the National Maritime Museum in Cornwall, a Gala Buffet at the fascinating Porthcurno Telegraph Museum near Land’s End, and lots of opportunities to share ideas during informal periods at our comfortable hotel. A choice of six trips were arranged to introduce us to Cornish heritage: St Ives, Newlyn, Lamorna, St Michael’s Mount, tin mines and archaeology.
Those of you responsible for sending your subscription to BAFM will know that these have been based on a complicated arrangement of a basic subscription plus a penny or two per member. There has been no increase for eight years.The following new rates were approved at the AGM.
Under 100 £50
101-500 £75
501-1000 £100
1001+ £150
Individual members £25
Do think about joining us for next year’s conference which will be in York from 2-4 October 2009.
Over the summer I attended two meetings of this group mainly of museum professionals from across the region. We were briefed on the future of Museums Libraries and Archives (MLA). The regional office in Bury St Edmunds will close at the end of 2008. The MLA head office is now in Birmingham. The new arrangements were still not finalised but there will be a regional manager. These were useful meetings where it was decided that there is still be a role for the RMG continuing to work for the benefit of all museums in our region. Your own Museum Development Officer will be able to advise you further but if you are not already on the MLA regional database and wish to receive information please send your full details to info@mlaeastofengland.org.uk or post to Audrey Webster, MLA East of England, 110 Northgate Street, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1HP - as soon as possible.
I was delighted to read that the Museum has been successful in being awarded Accredited Museum status by the MLA. I know that this is the culmination of an enormous amount of work by Terry Ransome the Museum Manager and his team.
The WFFM Council Meeting and General Assembly will be held in Glasgow from 30 April to 3 May 2009. Further information is available from Geoffrey Williams on 01323 722439.
How heritage can help deliver the sustainability and planned growth agendas
23 - 24 October, Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery
This was mentioned in my last newsletter. The conference explores the unique contribution that museums and heritage organisations make to the development of sustainable communities. The conference is aimed at museums, libraries and archives, those working in heritage and the arts, planners, policy makers and elected members, and anyone with responsibility for development control, regeneration, community cohesion and the environment. Speakers include Lord (Chris) Smith (Chair of the Environment Agency), Roy Clare CBE (Chief Executive, MLA) and Maurice Davies (Deputy Director of the Museums Association). Further information from laura.matthews@norfolk.gov.uk / www.renaissance-east.org.uk
As Deputy Chairman of Gainsborough’s House, and along with Carol Bunbury, also from BAFM, I am a member of this useful talking shop. We met at the Fitzwilliam Museum on 24 September. Maurice Davies Deputy Director of MA lead a discussion on the recent consultation on Museums and Sustainability. There have been discussion workshops around the country which you may have attended. Further information is available from the Museums Association. Sustainability means meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Maurice explained that there can be a triple bottom line to sustainability: environmental - social - economic. At the many discussion workshops a number of opportunities were highlighted. Use better lighting and encouraging greener travel came out top just ahead of changing staff behaviour (switch it off and so on). Reuse and recycle especially of display materials - how many expensive exhibitions have only one life when the display material could be recycled or the exhibition sent to other venues. There should be more flexible collection care requirements and less use of costly air conditioning. Our meeting was held in an enclosed space which was so warm many coats were taken off and we were provided with bottled water. Just talking about it makes you more conscious! Of course, there are difficulties - costs, staff time and staff attitudes but senior level commitment was crucial and as we were all representatives at trustee level we agreed it was essential that there was leadership from the top. Many of our museums are in historic or listed buildings which restrict what might be done, particularly environmentally. But we can all use local, green and fair trade suppliers and create partnerships with other local organisations. We can consult and involve the local community - Friends groups are already in there offering high quality volunteering at the heart of the community. We must all show leadership and keep pressurising our museums to plan for sustainability eg by including it in forward plans and accreditation. Margaret Greeves the Assistant Director of the Fitzwilliam and Kate Pretty, University Pro-Vice Chancellor spoke about the University’s museums and governance which contrasted with bodies with less formal structures. Peter Wienand of Farrers Solicitors gave a presentation on Intellectual Property Rights with a focus on the key issues facing museums over the next five years and explained how museums can avoid some of the problems in this area. A very useful day: we even managed a whirlwind tour of some wonderful Fitzwilliam highlights with Assistant Director David Scrase.
I enjoy receiving copies of your newsletters - please keep them coming. One snippet interested me -Havering Museum asked Colchester Museums to restore a Roman stone coffin domplete with lid and two skeletons but it has sunk into the floor of the dungeon so they are having some Roman glassware also from the Rainham area instead.
I enclose details of next year’s event to be held at the Castle Museum Colchester. Do consider coming to what I hope will be an interesting and useful day.
The Robert Logan Awards are an important aspect of the work of BAFM. More details can be found on the web site www.bafm.org.uk The awards are for a member of the museum profession under 30 years of age. Apart from a useful cash prize, previous winners have found that the publicity resulting from the award is an important part of their career development. Please bring the award to the notice of young professionals in your museum.
The editor always welcome news from groups: if you have a special story, anniversary or whatever, do think about putting yourselves forward. But, please have a careful look at the publishing submission guidelines on the BAFM web site for information on what is required. Some of you may have recognised yourselves in the photo of our Eastern Regional Conference featured in the Summer Journal. Does every member of your committee have a chance to read our Journal? What about circulating a copy around the staff? What sort of articles would you like to see in future editions? Let me know.
Old photos
Have you consulted www.francisfrith.com where there are thousands of old photographs to be viewed - perhaps a scene you could use in publicity.
Vocational Qualifications
There is now a centre offering qualifications for museums, libraries and archives in our region. West Suffolk College in Bury St Edmunds can provide course options at all levels - volunteers, attendants and others, full or part-time. This might be the opportunity to use your existing knowledge towards an NVQ at level 2, 3 or 4 as part of the voluntary work you may be carrying out as a Friend. For further information contact the School, of Hospitality & Commerce, West Suffolk College, Out Risbygate, Bury St Edmunds IP33 3RL or info@mlaeastofengland.org.uk
Web Again
I attended the recent meeting of the Board of BAFM at the British Museum. Before the meeting we had a fascinating presentation on Web 2.0 by Ingrid Beazley, the Chairman of the Friends of Dulwich Picture Gallery. It seems to be something we should all be aware of as a future way to communicate. Web 2.0 is used to describe developments to the Web to provide collaborative communications where previously the Web has been used a s a one-way tool. Dulwich use their recently set up site as a sort of blog or ‘face book’ in which members can be part of an on-line community. It has all sorts of material about the district not just the Gallery; people can post their own contributions - although comments are moderated. Without going into too much detail - and I was left behind by some of the more technical information - you can discover more about the benefits and criticisms of Web 2.0 by going to www.ukonl.ac.uk/cultural-heritage/documents/briefing-1 and numbers onwards. Briefing-4 was written by Ingrid Beazley whose enthusiasm for what Web 2.0 has brought to their Gallery was infectious. Information is also available from MLA. Have a look at www.dulwichonview.org.uk
Welcome Fitzwilliam and Valentine
After our regional conference last autumn at the Fitzwilliam Museum I am delighted to welcome their Friends as one of our newest members. In fact the Fitzwilliam Friends were the first such group to be set up in the country so we are particularly please to have them in BAFM. The Friends of Valentine’s Mansion are also new members and have sent me the following information. ‘As a Group we were formed in 2000 with the aim of bringing Valentines to the notice of the general public to support its restoration for the use of the community. This we have done as we played an important part in the Bid, showing HLF that local people are passionate about the buildings future. We have approx. 350 members and by staging events in, what was a derelict building, our local Council give us some credit for the success of the Award of £2m for the Mansion and £3m for the Gardens. The Garden project began in January 2007 and the Mansion project July 2007. The planned opening for both is Jan./Feb. 2009. It promises to be the 'jewel in the crown' of the London Borough of Redbridge.’ www.valentinesmansion.org.uk
World Federation of Friends of Museums WFFM
Usually located in such exotic places as South America or the Far East, next year the WFFM Council Meeting and General Assembly comes to the UK and will be held in Glasgow from 30 April to 3 May 2009. If you are interested, further information is available from Geoffrey Williams on 01323 722439. Geoffrey can also give information on this year’s WFFM Congress in Jerusalem from 21 to 26 September 2008.
BAFM Conference 3 to 5 October 2008
The conference this year will be at Penzance and our hosts will be the Friends of Penlee House Gallery and Museum. Information was in the last Journal but if you are interesting in attending let me know.
China
You may already be involved in programmes and activities linked to the Olympics in China - have a look at www.chinaeast.org.uk for details of some of the events in our region.
Guardians to the King
On 26 July Friends of the Ipswich and Colchester Museums were invited to a special joint private view of this stunning exhibition - over 200 members attended. The exhibition at Colchester Castle of 43 miniature terracotta figures -they are not all that small - features soldiers, officials, musicians, dancers and cavalry horses. They have never been to the UK before and cannot be seen anywhere else. The figures have been brought from Xuzhou Museum in Jiangsu Province, China and date back 2000 years. Do try to see this beautiful exhibition before it closes on 2 November 2008. It may be possible for you to arrange a group visit to the show set in the historic castle, itself worth a visit, by contacting Lynette Burgess, Learning and Marketing Manager (01206 506424 email lynette.burgess@colchester.gov.uk) If you are travelling by train there is an excellent package with National Express.
Museums, Sustainability and Growth
How heritage can help deliver the sustainability and planned growth agendas. Thursday 23 - Friday 24 October 2008 at Norwich Castle Museum. A conference exploring the unique contribution that museums and heritage organisations can make to the development of sustainable communities. For more information email laura.matthews@norfolk.gov.uk
Twenty-seven people from across the six counties were at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge on 13th March 2008. We were welcomed to the museum by Lady Rosalind Dearlove, Chairman of the Friends of the Fitzwilliam, ‘one of the greatest art collections of the nation and a monument of the first importance’, which was founded in 1816 when a Grand Tourist, the Viscount Fitzwilliam, bequeathed to the University his works of art, his library and the funds to house them. A recent extension provides street-level access, a shop and café which our members patronised and the education suite in which we held our conference. A panel discussed the different types of Friends’ groups and their value to their museums. Kate Carreno from the Sainsbury Centre in Norwich explained how their Friends are now run in-house, which seems to be a trend with the larger museum services and is a potential worry for BAFM. Peter Berridge, head of Colchester and Ipswich Museums Service, talked about his experiences of Friends, seen from the museum professional’s point of view. At the Open Forum a wide range of topics was discussed, including recruitment of members and committees, failing groups, fund-raising, corporate membership and other themes that were relevant both to the larger Friends’ groups, as well as those with just a small membership, thus providing much food for thought. After lunch we had an excellent presentation by Tim Heathcote, Deputy Chief Executive, Museums, Libraries and Archives, East of England. Tim’s update covered priorities in the museum sector, including the latest information on Renaissance investment. The rest of the day involved further discussion on the topics left over from the morning session.
Not long after writing my last newsletter I received the excellent news that the proposals to develop the Museum of East Anglian Life (MEAL) had taken a step closer to reality after the HLF earmarked £1.771 million to help transform the site. This draws together plans for the northern part of the museum site and builds on the physical, social and economic relationship between the museum and the town of Stowmarket. MEAL is situated in 70 acres of farmland in central East Anglia. Plenty of work for their Friends group! HLF’s third strategic plan was launched on 7th April. The rules have changed. Many of you will have already been looking into whether you have ideas for potential funding. A project must help people to learn about their own and other people’s heritage and must do either or both of the following: Conserve the UK’s diverse heritage for present and future generations to experience and enjoy. Help more people, and a wider range of people, to take an active part in and make decisions about heritage. I think most of us could tick those boxes. Our contact at the HLF East of England Team at Cambridge is Naomi Webb, Development Officer, (Tel: 01223 224880 - email: naomiw@hlf.org.uk). She or a colleague would be very glad to hear from any BAFM member who needs further advice and information. General information is available on the web site www.hlf.org.uk I was astonished to learn that from April 1994 to March 2007 our region has received over 170 project awards totalling £64,037,970. That includes over £10 million each to the Fitzwilliam and the Imperial War Museum Duxford, but also more modest awards to other museums.
The Museums Association has been funded by the Monument Trust (one of the Sainsbury Family Charities) to set up a programme for retired museum professionals aimed at capturing their unrecorded collections-related knowledge. The Fellowships are not for research but aim to record and share existing knowledge that might otherwise be lost. Seven Fellows have so far been announced of either 50 or 100 days length spread over 6 or 12 months. There is funding for one further round: information is available on the MA web site www.museumsassociation.org/monument
Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. An excellent leaflet is available from the Museums Association or from their web site www.museumsassociation.org/sustainability
The MA is asking us to respond on a number of aspects: taking the long view; going green; local and global communities; a museum message; collections; staff, skills and knowledge; and whether there is a sustainable future. All thought provoking and worth investigation. Do go into this subject.
We were welcomed by Lady Rosalind Dearlove Chairman of the Friends of the Fitzwilliam Museum who explained that as the first Friends group in the country established in 1909 they had been set up with the sole object of raising funds for acquisitions. The Museum is part of the University. Members attending came from Hertford Museum, Cecil Higgins Art Gallery, Ipswich Museums, Lawrence House Museum, Launceston, MLA East, Norwich Museums, Royston Museum, Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich, Sheringham Museum, Upminster Windmill, Welwyn Hatfield Museum and several individual members.
Lucy Tetlow introduced the morning session by explaining that her Museum Studies dissertation had been written about Friends groups at the time of admission to Nationals going free thus eliminating an important members’ benefit and that a new series of advantages had to be devised.
Kate Carreno from the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts said that they had modelled their new membership scheme on that of the British Museum taking it in-house but with many individual members still working hard for the Centre. She admitted that there was no ‘one size fits all’ even if in all cases the prime remit is to raise funds. The Centre was a part of the University of East Anglia. Some members had not been happy with the changes launched when the Centre reopened after two years of renovations. With the new arrangements they had gone out to the community hopefully breaking preconceptions about the organisation. The members are an important social group and provide funds with no strings attached. They are an important marketing focus. A committee still organises social events and one member of the Friends has a place on the Centre Board and also on the liaison group. After a settling in period the arrangements are now being reviewed in the light of a survey and meetings with focus groups. The new arrangements will be less complicated with one tier of general membership but also schools, benefactor and corporate levels. Access to public funding was crucial and had been at risk in the past. The new scheme had been highly commended in Accreditation and the grant from the Arts and Humanities Council had been increased. They really had to change and take the risk of jeopardising the social commitment - but very few Friends had not transferred. They were consulting up to thirty commercial organisations in devising the new corporate members scheme. The general feeling at BAFM was that there were many advantages of being completely independent from the museum so that the Friends could fight for the organisation should there be difficulties. It was agreed that the membership route was not for all Friends groups. Schools could be encourage to join Friends as institutional members. There had been some successful Instep (Inservice Teacher Education Practice) meetings with 120 to 150 teachers present.
Peter Berridge Head of Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service had started his career in the south west and had been aware that Friends could become social groups with little involvement in the museum itself and a risk that they could cost the Museum money rather than supply funds. At Colchester the Friends had around 500 members with a lively programme of talks; they were very influential and effective. Since the amalgamation of the service with Ipswich there had been a growth in provision and the hope of savings in the future without jeopardising services. The Ipswich Friends, with a similar number of members, were more structured than those at Colchester but there was no suggestion that the two Friends groups should amalgamate. Peter strongly advised against taking Friends in house in the case of local authority services. Differences between the two centres included that Ipswich Friends themselves provided guides while at Colchester they were Blue Badge Guides.
A point of general discussion was the difficulty of attracting young members to what were accepted as ageing organisations. In University towns students were a great potential for new members. Some major institutions such as Tate had very successful young groups. Sainsbury handed the Centre over to the young for special events, with suitable supervision. Funding could be available for new initiatives through Engage and the Arts Council. Royston Museum had involved young archaeologists. There was scope to emphasise corporate responsibility in the community. It may be that we had to skip a generation noting that such initiatives as Family Sunday at Sainsbury were proving popular although it was mentioned that in its early days the Sainsbury family had been against under 12s attending as they thought youngsters could be put off museums for life. How things have changed with so much excellent work now being done with young people.
After lunch we were joined by Tim Heathcote Deputy Director of MLA East, a quango for the Department of Culture Media and Sport, but an independent charitable company. The MLA’s priority areas were to strengthen communities, enhance and promote learning skills and improvement to the sector. Tim talked about local events in the Cultural Olympiad and that the east would be hosting some Olympic events. The MLA is part of Local Government Improving Performance Partnership (LGIPN) - in any local government reform the County Councils, Unitary Authorities and District Councils all provide non-statutory museum services: MLA must strive to maintain the role of culture. Apart from links with schools and academic research there was the Traditional Skills Report that could be of interest to museums with collections needing to make use of skills such as railway preservation, wood working and so on in the natural rural and maritime environment. Some museums are already concerned about the loss of traditional skills in the care of their objects. Reciprocal placements might be a help where a museum could, for example, offer help to a school and have a positive impact on learning and attainment tackling difficult areas of the curriculum. We must make contacts and use all the resources and funds that are out there. An area that could be of use to museums would be the recording of memories of the Olympics so as to develop an archival legacy.
The four Renaissance hubs of Norfolk, Cambridge, Luton and Colchester, now with Ipswich, were explained. By 2010/11 annual investment by MLA throughout England will be £48.7M. Although the changes to MLA by 2009 would be of concern, various partnerships and support would still be available. Members of BAFM were encouraged to contact MLA for further information: the web site is www.mlaeastofengland.org.uk where full reports on these topics and the funding data base can be found. For information on Renaissance East of England please contact Jo Warr, Hub Manager - Tel: 01603 493665 E-mail: jo.warr@norfolk.gov.uk www.renaissance-east.org.uk You can also get information on the Olympics at www.london2012.com and click on the getting involved button; and from Liz Hughes on the Regional Creative Programme liz.hughes@goeast.gsi.gov.uk 01223 372683. There are also officers in each county.
Tim explained the Museum Development Fund. Members should contact MLA for information on the best approach and relativity of, for example, their collections to the school curriculum. Museums are managing to attract children but this still does not lead to new members. New ideas and strategies will be crucial to attracting not only visitors but also members - not least for our committees.
Sheringham Museum, now closed for redevelopment, had a specific problem in that they have been a trust since 1988 with 250 members. The new museum being developed with HLF funding will contain three lifeboats and three fishing boats as well as a social history museum. They wanted to know if they should create a separate Friends organisation for visitors to join. It was generally thought that people could associate themselves through a simple membership scheme which need not entitle them to be part of the Charity. Various ideas were suggested for fund-raising including dinners, quizzes, auctions.
It was recommended that may excellent ideas could be found in the BAFM Journal about what other Friends groups are doing.
Hooray for Havering! In their March Newsletter the Friends of Havering Museum announced that they have been awarded £990,000 by HLF to turn an empty shell in Romford High Street into a local history museum. Congratulations! It would be interesting to tot up the total HLF funding the area has received for our museums.
Oddments
To those who have renewed their membership, thanks for your support of BAFM. If you have not yet sent your membership renewal and insurance for January - December 2008, please deal with it as soon as possible - or let me know of any problems. Renewals are to be returned to Jayne Selwood the BAFM Membership Secretary - not to me!
Earlier in the year I attended my first meeting of the BAFM Council held in London where I heard about what is going on nationally. I am impressed by what is achieved by this group of highly dedicated members who had travelled from all round the country lead by our Chairman Norah Dunbar who travels from Belfast. A constant theme seems to be fundraising - new ideas to provide the much needed funds to support our museums. There are no magic wands: it is a matter of hard slog and making as many contacts as possible. The fundraising mantra is ‘people give to people’ so if you have any personal contacts these are the ones to go for. Of course, it all depends on the size of the group and the energy of the committee members.
I like the expression ‘halo-effect’ which has been used in describing one of the reasons commercial sponsors might give when they support museum and gallery projects. Perhaps we sometimes think that anyone giving us funds - and that can mean our general membership - are in it for what they can get out such as free admission and concessions in the shop.
Each BAFM group receives a supply of the full-colour Journal - a new issue is due shortly. Do you ensure that your committee all have a chance to read this publication? It contains all sorts of useful ideas.
And finally . . . Future Regional Events
I would be glad to hear what you would like for a future annual conference. Topics - talks or workshops, discussions and so on. What do you want from BAFM? I would be glad to have an offer of a venue that is reasonably accessible to members in the six counties. Would a Saturday be more popular than a weekday? Please send me an e mail or a letter - or even a phone call!
Best wishes and particular thanks to all those who made the journey to be at the Conference.
According to the Museums Association, there are over 1,500 museums in the UK with the majority having a Friends group but only around 500 belong to BAFM. In the Eastern Counties alone there are over 70 museums listed in the MA directory. While some do not have a Friends group, more members of BAFM would be a good thing so if you know of any groups that have not joined perhaps you might put them in touch with me.
Since 1992 Alan has been a committee member of the Association for Suffolk Museums and was Chairman for three years from 2004. Alan was on the Ethics Committee of the Museums Association for four years. He has also been a Board member of Aldeburgh Music and of Dance East so has experience covering a wide range of arts and museums. He was very involved with the development of Compton Verney in Warwickshire of which he was a Governor for ten years. When visiting museums, Alan finds himself looking as much at the back stage aspects - labels, shop, catering, lighting - as the collections.
Having greatly benefited from BAFM help when he took over the Chair of FOIM he looks forward to being involved with Friends groups in the Eastern Region and hopes to plan a regional conference in the months ahead and generally assisting the groups in his region.
