Memorandum submitted by Birmingham Museums
and Art Gallery
1. EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
1.1 Policy: DCMS/MLA should consider strengthening
its policy position in terms of collections care and conservation.
There is a need across the museums sector for the centralised
setting and dissemination of standards, such as the MGC Standards
series and Benchmarks, and the coordination and development of
context sensitive advice in relation to collection care and management.
Renaissance in the Regions offers a potential
model for the delivery of "context sensitive advice"
to improve the delivery and support of collections care but it
needs to be identified as a required activity as demonstrated
through the West Midlands Renaissance at Work (RAW) programme.
1.2 Funding: Focus and sustainability are
key issues. The focus of central funding though the Renaissance
programme has had a positive impact on the care and management
of collections. However improvements achieved in collection care
in that period are unlikely to be sustainable at current levels
if core funding in the form of Renaissance or similar is not made
available post 2008.
The extension of relief on business rates to
all accredited museums rather than just those with trust status,
who have benefited from the extension of VAT relief, could release
funds for collections care. For example this relief could be applied
just to collection storage facilities where the benefit will have
a direct impact upon the care of collections.
1.3 Disposal: Disposal is an important tool
in the management and care of collections, however, it is unrealistic
to consider it a solution to the reduction of the volume of collections
held in UK museums. Present practice and policy is effective in
encouraging a pragmatic and realistic approach to disposal of
collection items while ensuring that appropriate safeguards are
in place. The sale of items from publicly owned collections is
not acceptable as this undermines the principle of trust, access
and conservation central to the mission of museums.
Levels of historic knowledge and understanding
are critical in developing disposal decisions and access to advice
through subject specialist networks (SSN's) is essential in this
process. Therefore the development and support of SSN's is key
element in disposal strategy.
1.4 Acquisitions: There has been a significant
decline in active acquisition through purchase to enhance collections.
This decline has resulted in collections failing to reflect the
development of art, design and society in general. Most museums
and galleries rely on a diminishing number of funding sources
to support acquisition most of which are outside of the public
arena.
2. INTRODUCTION
2.1 Collections are at the heart of the
Museum. They underpin everything that we do, they are the tools
with which we communicate, teach and inspire. Without them the
Museum could not exist and the people of Birmingham would be historically
and culturally bereft. The care of the collections is therefore
an essential activity core to the purpose and function of the
Museum.
3. CONTEXT/FACTUAL
INFORMATION
3.1 Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery
(BM&AG) is one of the largest local authority museum services
in the UK. Supported by c.220 staff (full-time, part-time and
temporary), and working to a net budget of circa £7 million,
the service received 540,000 visits in person in 2005-06. The
service extends across seven sites, including Grade I and Grade
II* Listed Buildings and a scheduled monument, and cares for over
750,000 museum objects. The collections are of local, regional,
national and international significance, and the collections of
Fine and Applied Art, Science and Industry, Social History and
Numismatics are Designated as outstanding by the DCMS.
3.2. The service is free at point of use,
except for some special exhibitions.
3.3. BM&AG is the lead museum in the
West Midlands Hub of the Renaissance in the Regions programme
receiving funding £7.4 million of funding through the scheme
and we have effectively developed our role in the support of museum
services across the West Midlands region.
3.4. Renaissance funding in the form of
building capacity of conservation resources and the Renaissance
at Work (RAW) programme (see appendix) has been enabled the improvement
of collection care and conservation at BM&AG and the delivery
of collection care training and advice to museums across the West
Midlands Region.
4. COLLECTIONS
SERVICES DEPARTMENT
4.1 The Collections Services department
is responsible for the delivery of all aspects of collections
care and management. The Head of Collection Services is responsible
for the strategic development of collections and operational delivery
is divided between three sections:
— Collections Care and Conservation—responsible
for the delivery of all aspects of conservation and collections
care across the service.
— Collections Research and Development—responsible
for curatorial aspects and development of collections including
acquisition and disposal.
— Collections Management—responsible
for documentation, loans and the collections database.
5. COLLECTIONS
CARE AT
BM&AG
5.1 BM&AG commits approximately 8% of
revenue on collection care and conservation which includes storage
facilities and personnel.
5.2. There has been a shift in emphasis
toward a more holistic/preventive approach to managing the care
of collections. The former Director and the Head of Collections
Services attended the ICCROM programme on "Decision Making
in Conservation" in 1998-09 and this has had a significant
impact upon the organisations strategy in terms of collections
care. The Museum participated in the "Teamwork for Preventive
Conservation" programme ran by ICCROM.
5.3. The Collection Care and Conservation
Department is made of 10 and half staff, four full time (permanent),
four part time (permanent) and two and a half contract posts (funded
to April 2008).
5.4. The Head of Collection Care (appointed
2003) and one full time collection care officer are responsible
for maintaining baseline standards across the various collection
related activities of the service including display and storage.
5.5. An additional two and a half collection
care posts are funded through the Renaissance in the Regions initiative.
These posts also provide collections care advice and training
to other Museums in the region through the Renaissance at Work
(RAW) programme.
5.6. Renaissance in the Regions funding
has provided £432,000 of investment in the areas of conservation
and collection care in the period 2004-08.
5.7. BM&AG has also successfully accessed
other funds to contribute to the delivery of conservation and
collections care including HLF (conservation of frames, Documentation
of science and technology collections) and Designated Challenge
Fund supported the purchase of the Minisis collections management
database and the development of web access to the science and
technology collections.
5.8. BCC/BM&AG has made a significant
capital investment of £4.2 million in improving collection
storage between 2003-06.
5.9. 90% of the Museums collections have
been relocated to a single off site storage facility, the Museum
Collections Centre which includes a new extension that provides
a museum standard environment.
5.10. The Museum Collections Centre offers
improved storage environment for collections whilst improving
access to public and researchers alike.
5.11. The movement of collections from the
main museum site to the new collections storage facility has enabled
former storage spaces in the main Museum building to be converted
for use by schools and public.
5.12. 90% of the Museum collection are stored
in conditions that are considered as "acceptable" or
"better".
6. FUNDING
6.1 Approximately 74% of revenue and capital
funding was derived from Birmingham City Council in 2005-06. Renaissance
contributed approximately 20% with the remaining 6% coming from
a number of other sources.
6.2 Renaissance funding has led to significant
improvements in collections care and conservation infrastructure
at BM&AG and delivery across the service and to others in
the West Midlands region through the Renaissance at Work (RAW)
programme.
6.3 Sustainability is a key concern. The
focusing of resources through the Renaissance programme has been
fundamentally successful and has resulted in improvements in collection
care. Collections care is delivered by and through people and
the continued revenue support for personnel in this area is essential
to underpinning the progress that has been made at BM&AG and
across the West Midlands Region.
6.4 The age and type of buildings that house
the collections is a key challenge when considering the delivery
of collections care as the envelope that houses the collections
is the primary element when considering a collection care strategy.
6.5 Maintenance budgets are under severe
pressure and it is an ongoing challenge to meet the basic maintenance
needs of the six historic buildings that house the collections.
6.6 BCC is presently investing capital of
circa £11.2 million in a programme to replace the ageing/failing
roofs of the main Museum buildings in the period 2003-08.
6.7 Major improvements to the fabric and
the installation of "conservation heating" are a key
element of a successful HLF bid for the development of Aston Hall,
the spectacular 17th century home of the Holte family.
6.8 The business rates that the service
has to meet are also a major financial commitment accounting for
6% of the revenue budget. If the service had trust status it would
be possible to claim significant relief as a charitable/educational
institution. Birmingham City Council however has no desire to
pursue the issue of trust status at present.
6.9 If relief on business rates were extended
to all accredited museums rather than just those with trust status
this would release funds that could potentially be utilised for
care and conservation of collections.
7. EFFECTIVENESS
OF DCMS/MLA IN
REPRESENTATION
7.1 The move toward a purely strategic role
for both national and regional MLA's has resulted in the creation
of a collection care "information" void. For example
the services of coordinating and setting standards that were managed
by the MGC and the delivery of collections care training through
the regional councils has not been replaced. This issue was explored
in more detail in the Resource funded study of 2002 on "Collections
information and advice in the museums sector".
7.2 There is a need to coordinate, develop
and maintain nationally recognised standards in the various aspects
of the care of collections. No single body or organisation is
fulfilling this function at present and it is therefore difficult
to identify what standards should be applied.
7.3 The Renaissance at Work programme has
also demonstrated that there is a need for at local level for
"context sensitive" collection care advice that is delivered
face to face (see appendix 1).
7.4 The main piece of policy provision relating
to collection care is through the museums accreditation scheme
though completion of the Resource/MLA developed "Benchmarks
in collection care" is not a requirement of the scheme. BM&AG
has successfully achieved accredited status but the standards
for collection care in the accreditation process are set relatively
low with the result that this has had little, if any, impact upon
the delivery of collection care. The inclusion of Benchmarks as
a performance indicator (PI) in the Corporate Performance Assessment
(CPA) carried out by the Audit Office effectively addresses this
issue for museums managed by local authorities.
7.5 The Renaissance in the Regions identified
the care of collections as a key area of activity under the heading
"Enhance the care, management and conservation of collections"
in the 2004-06 business planning period. This heading was dropped
in the 2006-08 business planning period after a review process
and the emphasis shifted farther towards access and education.
This made it very difficult to justify funding for collections
care activities in this period as it could be interpreted that
collections care activities would not be supported. This proved
not to be the case in Birmingham due to strong directorate support
for this element. It was however difficult to make the successful
and proven collection care activities which we wished to develop
from the first phase of the programme fit comfortably within the
criteria of the second phase.
7.6 Government Indemnity (GI) is one of
the few remaining areas where DCMS/MLA takes direct a direct interest
in one aspect, the museum environment, of the standards of collection
care. BM&AG has experienced some difficulty dealing with this
issue due to age and nature of the buildings, that house the collections.
7.7 We would encourage DCMS/MLA to undertake
a consultation with users of GI to assess the effectiveness and
impact of the revised reporting structure.
7.8 There is also potential for tension
between the various policies that presently emanate from central
government. The drive for economy and the movement of resources
from back of house services to front line services as recommended
by Gershon raises significant challenges in the area of collection
care. Collection care is by definition a back of house/behind
the scenes process and whilst the collections care team at BM&AG
have made efforts to open up the activity through various activities
it is and will remain fundamentally a back of house activity that
underpins and enables the delivery of front of house activities
through exhibition, loan etc.
7.9 Government policy is also requiring
local authorities to produce significant savings across the board.
It is not unreasonable for local authorities to expect that museums
contribute to this process but this is problematic where the Renaissance
programme is concerned as the funding agreement requires a commitment
from the authority not to reduce revenue funding below an agreed
baseline.
7.10 The Renaissance programme requires
that the hub leads and supports region wide activities. These
activities need to be accommodated alongside the strategic and
corporate objectives of Birmingham City Council which are necessarily
focussed upon activities that primarily impact within BCC's administrative
boundaries. However Renaissance has created the opportunity for
BM&AG to engage with the emerging "City region"
debate and to develop our role effectively. The development of
regional assemblies also creates the potential for the development
of "joined up" thinking in relation to the delivery
of collection care strategy in the region.
8. ACQUISITION
8.1 BM&AG maintains a Collecting Policy
in accordance with MLA Accreditation standards. The Collecting
Policy 2003-08 has been formally adopted by Birmingham City Council
and is available for consultation and as a downloadable document
on the BM&AG website and is also available in all staffed
museum sites. The initial review process has now commenced prior
to the development of a new Policy for 2009-14. In particular,
the Policy makes reference to the UNESCO 1970 Convention on the
Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export
and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, the NMDC Statement
of Principles and Proposed Actions on the Spoliation of Works
of Art during the Holocaust and World War II period (1998), the
Treasure Act 1996 (England, Wales & Northern Ireland) or Bona
Vacantia (Scotland) and the Code of practice on archives for museums
in the United Kingdom, (2002).
8.2 Future revision of the Policy will include
specific reference to guidelines and legislation relating to Human
Remains and Human Tissue.
8.3 In addition BM&AG is working with
BCC Auditors to develop transparent and thorough procedures in
collection development and acquisition which will reinforce documentation,
collection care and due diligence process.
8.4 The Goodison Review, 2004 (commissioned
by HM Treasury, 2003), and The Collecting Challenge, The Art Fund
Survey of Museums 2006 both highlighted the issue of decreasing
purchase funds available in UK Museums. BM&AG is unusual in
that it maintains an acquisitions budget. This budget has reduced
significantly over the last 10 years and is under increasing pressure
due to the need to address overall operational issues such as
maintenance.
8.5 BM&AG purchase fund is presently
set at £16K per annum and is dependent upon the generation
of matched funding for its release.
8.6 In 2005-06 period acquisition purchases
currently total £137,000. Of which BCC contributed £16,253.
Grant income of £122,000 was sourced from The Art Fund, MLA/V&A
purchase fund and local charitable trusts, the Friend s of BM&AG
and the Public Picture Gallery Fund.
8.7 Lack of national funding for acquisitions
places an ever-increasing, and ultimately unsustainable, burden
on museums and charitable organisations, and requires a disproportionate
use of resources, particularly curatorial time, in fund-raising
for acquisitions.
8.8 The generation of income through corporate
sponsorship is an as yet untapped resource. Friends, patrons and
corporate support programmes such as those found in the US (due
to generous tax incentives) and other European museums are generally
underdeveloped in England.
8.9 The Acceptance in Lieu (AIL) and cultural
property programmes are of real benefit to museums. In 2006, BM&AG
was allocated a significant collection of Chinese Art and Design
through the AIL process, although proposals for allocation in
2005 were not successful. However, the application procedures
are fair and efficient. The rationalisation of AIL processes within
MLA has proved effective. However, other recommendations in the
Goodison Review, 2004, for improved support for museum acquisitions
and the allocation of cultural property, especially through the
tax system, have not been implemented.
9. DISPOSAL
9.1 BM&AG's policy on disposal is detailed
in the Collecting Policy 2003-05, sections 5.12-5.14. By definition
the museum has a long-term purpose and possesses (or intends to
acquire) substantial permanent collections in relation to its
stated objectives. Maintenance of such collections is a core curatorial
function. Birmingham City Council accepts the principle that there
is a strong presumption against the disposal of any item in the
Birmingham Museums Service collections.
9.2 BM&AG recognises that appropriately
managed and scrutinised disposal policy and procedure is an essential
aspect of responsible collection management. The disposal of four
items by transfer to other museums has been approved by the BCC
Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport & Culture in 2006. Levels
of historic knowledge and understanding are critical in developing
disposal decisions and access to advice through subject specialist
networks (SSN's) is essential in this process. BM&AG has convened
and accessed a number of subject specialist groups to deal with
the disposal issues relating to the Science and Technology and
Natural History Collections.
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