Museums making the difference to communities

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Museums making the difference to communities

• 29 January 2009

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The new performance agenda a challenge to
museums

• Focus on outcomes
• Having evidence of museums impact
• Tuning what museums do to local priorities
  against the National Indicator Set
• Negotiating the place of museums in local
  strategic and delivery structures
• Forging partnerships beyond the local authority
  museum sector

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• The value of culture cannot be expressed only
  with statistics. Audience numbers give us a poor
  picture of how culture enriches us
• John Holden, Capturing Cultural Value. How
  culture has become a tool of government policy,
  Demos 2004

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• A museum is a non-profit, permanent institution
  in the service of society and its development
  which exhibits the tangible and intangible
  heritage of humanity and its environment for the
  purposes of education, study and enjoyment.
• ICOM Statutes, 2007

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New performance framework an opportunity

• Demonstrate, against priorities of National
  Indicator Set, where museums add value to
  communities as museums
• Build and shape a better evidence base
• Have a greater impact
• New partnerships

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Museums making a difference
Supporting delivery of the curriculum
Strengthening community cohesion
Building identity and civic pride
Support the local economy through tourism
Opportunities for adults to learn and improve
skills
Helping people feel included in their local
community
Provide positive activities for young people
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Telling the story

• Sector knows its value and it tells stories
  need to put these two things together
• The British Museums purpose is to be a world
  museum telling the story of human cultural
  achievement.
• Watford Museum telling the story of Watford,
  past and present

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Making a difference Historic Dockyard Chatham

• Initiative to encourage volunteering, seen as way
  Dockyard engages with community
• Major contributor to volunteering opportunities
  in Medway Council and Kent areas
• Direct link to NI 6 Participation in regular
  volunteering

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How to demonstrate impact - Outcomes Framework
for Museums, Libraries and Archives

• Indication of where the sectors offer is
  strongest against the priorities in the National
  Indicator Set
• Evidence of impact
• Best practice

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Fit for purpose? Improvement support

• Delivery of A Passion for Excellence with our
  partners
• MLA improvement support online www.mla.gov.uk/poli
  cy/improvement
• Performance management
• Peer Review
• How to identify improvement needs
• How to access improvement support

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Museums making a difference

• New environment will be challenging
• Major opportunities to ensure our sector
  maximises it impact on communities
• We need to think about the sector in the round,
  not just local authority partners
• We have a good track record and we should have
  the confidence to argue our place

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• Paul Bristow
• Senior Policy Adviser (Local Government and
  Communities)
• paul.bristow_at_mla.gov.uk
• 020 7273 8286