Museums and Collections at Risk
Arts Council England (ACE), with a group of key funding, development and membership bodies for the museums and heritage sector, updated the joint statement on heritage, museums and collections at risk on 27 July 2021.
Read the updated statement on heritage, museums and collections at risk.
MDM is here to support you if your museum is undergoing significant challenges, whether that’s restructure, financial hardship or even the threat of closure. If your museum is undergoing significant challenges please reach out to us as soon as possible by emailing enquiries@mdmidlands.org.uk and a member of the team will be in touch.
We also provide updates to DCMS through Arts Council England on museums at risk of permanent closure with permission from the museums’ governing bodies to share this information to provide oversight and trends information around risks to museums. If your museum is at risk in the coming months please contact us immediately by emailing enquiries@mdmidlands.org.uk stating when you are at risk of closure.
Museums Facing Closure: Legal and Ethical Issues
The Museums Association (MA) and ACE have previously commissioned research into over 20 museum closures in the UK to understand how the governing bodies, the employees and the individuals involved responded. This report provides general information on how governing bodies, museum staff and volunteers have approached closure and outlines the issues they faced and the guidance that they found useful. It is designed for governing bodies and museum staff and volunteers facing a similar challenge.
Read the full report here
MA’s Code of Ethics for Museums
The MA’s Code of Ethics for Museums sets out three key principles that all museums should support:
public engagement & public benefit
stewardship of collections
individual and institutional integrity
Download the MA’s Code of Ethics for Museums here
Museums facing closure should work in accordance with the Code of Ethics for Museums when considering the future of their collections.
Ethical Transfer, Reuse and Disposal of Collections
The Museums Association 'Off the Shelf' toolkit encourages https://www.museumsassociation.org/campaigns/ethics/disposal/ museums to take an active approach to appropriate disposal, while ensuring safeguards are in place to protect collections and public trust in museums. It was developed in 2023 with a steering group made up of representatives from the MA’s Ethics Committee, ACE, MGS, Welsh Government, NIMC, NMDC, Collections Trust, AIM and the NLHF.
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