Working with other museums in the region
The Renaissance programme is for all museums, large and small. It offers pathways and partnerships to raise standards, attract new audiences and make a difference to communities. The East of England Museum Hub has already worked directly with over 40% of the region’s museums, some 90 in total. This doesn’t include the extensive support provided via the Museum Development Officer Network which is part-funded by Renaissance through the Museum Development Fund and its direct support for two posts. This commitment to working with the wider museums community is further extended in this year’s business plan with around 20% of the budget dedicated to this area and a further £144,000 committed to the MDF.
Below you can find out more about the work Renaissance is doing in partnership with the wider museums community in the East of England. Click on the links to read case studies on these topics, or on the menu on the left hand side for more detail on these major projects.
Support and advice
SHARE and regional posts (Hub-wide): SHARE is a new service from the East of England Hub designed to provide help and support to museums throughout the region, across a range of issues and in a number of different ways. Regional posts dedicated to working with the wider museum community are being continued as part of SHARE; Conservation officers based in St. Albans and Norwich, and a Natural History Project Officer based in Cambridge will provide specific support in these areas. Click on the link on the left-hand menu for further information on how to access SHARE.
Museum Development Officer Network (Hub-wide): The museum sector in each county in the region is supported by an MDO or MDF manager. They provide extensive advice on a range of issues and help to coordinate training. Renaissance funding continues for two of these posts, one based in Cambridge working with the University Museums and one based in Norfolk. Click on the link on the left-hand menu for further information and how to contact your MDO.
Learning support (Hub-wide): The learning teams at Hub museums continue to provide support to colleagues in other museums. For instance the Learning Development Officer post at Museums Luton, funded by Renaissance, works with museums in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire without a dedicated education staff to develop learning programmes.Raising standards and training
Training and Workforce Development Officer (Hub Central): Since taking up his post in August Simon Floyd has been working in liaison with MLA East of England and the MDOs to coordinate training provision for museum staff in the region. The first SHARE Regional Training Calendar has been produced.
Evaluation training (Hub Central): The Hub Evaluation Officer will continue to offer training in this important area for all museum staff. Click on the menu on the left-hand side for further details about the Evaluation toolkit and to sign up for a training session.
Workforce development (Hub-wide): All Hub partners are committed to providing training to wider museums. For example CIMS are embarking on a programme of Front of House development which will involve the Museums in Essex Committee.
Accreditation (Hub Central): The post of Accreditation Officer will be 50% funded by the Hub this year to ensure this important source of advice continues despte cuts in MLA East of England's core grant.
MOSAIC Profiling (NMAS): The new project works with members of the Regional Museums Network, alongside Hubs, to provide research into visitors via the MOSAIC programme. This will provide in-depth analysis of where visitors come from and their demographic status to inform future audience development initiatives. Partnership working
Formal museum partnerships (Hub-wide): Over the past few years, the Hub has pioneered the development of networks of museums with similar collections and/ or geographical links in order to encourage the sharing of expertise and provide opportunities for joint-promotion and projects. The Greater Fens Museum Partnership, Maritime Heritage East and the Rural Museums Network are now maturing in their work. The GFMP has produced a major touring exhibition, Feast of Fenland, MHE has published a report on the region's maritime collections, Setting the Course, and RMN will be leading on sustainability and the museum sector.
Touring Exhibitions programme (Luton and CIMS): Under the last business plan strong partnerships were built between two Hub museums and Stevenage and Epping Forest District Museums to jointly produce a range of touring exhibitions for the region. This partnership is continuing with more high-quality exhibitions to be offered for free to the region's museums. Click on the menu on the left-hand side for a full list of available exhibitions and details of how to book.
Luton Voices (Museums Luton): This large-scale community project aims to record, preserve and celebrate the oral history of a broad range of communities who together make Luton what it is today. The project is being run in collaboration with Bedfordshire museums.
University of Cambridge Museums: Learning and Outreach Projects: Renaissance funding has supported a range of community learning and outreach activities in the seven embedded museums of the University of Cambridge. So far 30 projects have been run, reaching a total of 35,000 people, many of them engaging with a museum for the first time. The funding has provided for a dedicated Museum Development Officer to help coordinate this activity and the programme has helped forge a closer partnership between the museums which is benefiting both staff and visitors. The report below gives a full picture of the programme.
New Communities Project (NMAS): This pilot project focuses on the government's growth agenda for the East of England. Ancient House Museum in Thetford will work with other museums in the growth point areas to promote the museum and heritage sector's unique contribution to the cohesion of new communities.
Real Teaching (Hub-wide): This long-term project aims to ensure deliverers of initial teacher training in the region incorporate museum visits into their courses for new teachers. Hub partners have been working with a number of non-Hub museums and a range of ITT providers to demonstrate how museum-based learning can complement classroom teaching. Grants and funding
Hub enhancement of MDF (Hub Central): The Hub will again invest £27,000 to boost the MDF, supporting the work of the MDO Network in delivering regional strategic priorites and extending the reach of Renaissance to an increased number of museums.
Grants to medium-sized museums (Hub Central): The Hub will also repeat the offer to medium-sized museums in the region to bid for grants of up to £5,000 via the MDOs. Last year, Bedford Museum's successful bid enabled them to provide a series of learning events to support their exhibition 'Golds, Gods and Kings', while the National Horseracing Museum at Newmarket used the money to provide a mobile classroom.