Oxford’s History of Science Museum and Pitt Rivers Museum have jointly won the 2019 Collections Trust Award for Multaka-Oxford, a project that creates volunteer opportunities in the museums for forced migrants who have recently arrived in the UK. Multaka, which means meeting point in Arabic, uses the collections as a meeting point to bring people […]
Our ‘Banish the Backlog’ campaign has been focusing on the gaps in collection inventories, but museums face many other types of backlog. In this guest blog post Caitlin Peck, Curator at the Museum of East Anglian Life, tells us about their new initiative for getting up-to-date with digitisation. With seventeen historic buildings set in 75 […]
One year on from the launch of Spectrum 5.0, our 2018 conference explores how the latest version is being put into practice. We’ll start unveiling the programme in the spring, but for now please save the date: Thursday 13 September 2018.
Sarah Brown Sarah is the face of Collections Trust around the country, and works closely with the museum development network across the English regions to deliver free, ACE-funded events. She originally trained as a conservator and has worked in various collections management roles, most recently managing the team that secured £1.3m HLF support for Kent Mining […]
When is the Collections Trust 2017 conference? The one-day conference is on Thursday 21 September 2017. There will be a pre-conference meet-up the evening before, Wednesday 20 September. Where is the conference held? The conference is at The Hospitium, Museum Gardens, York. The Hospitium is approximately a 7 minute walk from York railway station – you […]
This resource provides an outline for adaption for museums wishing to develop a marketing plan.
This toolkit of resources aims to assist with the training, development and learning of your volunteers.
The resource is a step-by-step guide to help museums without in-house marketing expertise to write engaging and effective press releases.
The five case studies in this publication illustrate how Spectrum can be used to improve and sustain the management of UK museum collections.
This paper is directly related to the Accreditation Standard, providing guidance on the requirements of the Standard (2011 edition). It includes acceptable and appropriate constitutions for governing bodies, and describes the characteristics of long-term organisations which exist to benefit the public and safeguard collections.
This resource is intended as a guide for museums developing a site specific environmental policy statement. The list of helpful templates will assist with the completion of your Accreditation application.
This resource has an international perspective. It will be useful to museum leaders who are developing wider environmental sustainability programmes and in supporting development of a policy statement.
This resource supports museums looking to improve their environmental sustainability.
This publication provides a legacy of the work of the Green Museums Strand of work delivered by Renaissance North West during 2009-2011 and is a guide for museums looking to improve their environmental sustainability.
This toolkit has been designed to help museums measure social and environmental impacts. It includes a blank template and an impact evaluation/assessment framework, which has been tested using evidence from a small number of AIM member museums.
This guidance is aimed at Museum Development Officers/ Museum Mentors and any museum developing their policy statement on environmental sustainability; it is linked directly to the requirement outlined in the Accreditation Standard.
This publication describes a research project which explored the ways in which young children experience the space of the museum or gallery and the effect this has on their learning.
This resource provides information on the potential of museums and galleries to enhance the health and wellbeing of patients and staff.
This guidance aims to support museums in understanding when DBS checks are required and how to manage them.
This website provides links to all Kids in Museums resources including fact sheets and information for Takeover day.
This database from the National Foundation for Educational Research provides materials from arts organisations, museums and education specialists. They are designed to generate creative new ideas and inspire teachers of subjects at Key Stage 1 – 5 across the national curriculum.
This paper outlines how digital technology in physical spaces can offer a seamless experience centred firmly on the object. It encourages museums to reveal more of their collections.
This resource is a slide share presentation for writing effective museum text.
This website provides resources and top tips for organisations wishing to use social media to market their organisation.
This resource provides information on how to apply for brown tourist signs for tourist attraction or facility located directly off a road managed by Highways England.
The Sign Design Guide is concerned with making environments accessible to everyone and addresses the concept of ‘inclusive signage’. It provides clear guidance on producing signs and other wayfinding information.
This guide is aimed at those museums just beginning to develop their venue hire and corporate hospitality and those who already offer such services but want to grow it further. It provides information and top tips.
This guide provides advice on all aspects of creating a successful museum café with examples and top tips included.
This guide provides an insight into some of the complexities of retailing and an understanding of why it is sometimes necessary to seek professional advice.
Visitor attraction quality schemes can help museums to develop and promote themselves. As well as receiving an unbiased viewpoint of the visitor experience by industry professionals, the scheme can provide promotional opportunities and ongoing support.
Visitor attraction quality schemes can help museums to develop and promote themselves. As well as receiving an unbiased viewpoint of the visitor experience by industry professionals, the scheme can provide promotional opportunities and ongoing support.
Visitor Attraction Quality Schemes can help museums to develop and promote themselves. As well as receiving an unbiased viewpoint of the visitor experience by industry professionals, the scheme can provide promotional opportunities and ongoing support.
This resource is a report on the SHARE Marketing Development project that took place in 2011/12, including a ‘top-tips’ guide for museums.
This report has been researched and prepared to assist cultural heritage organisations in considering and developing appropriate methodologies for audience work.
This document provides guidance on the evaluation of museum learning programmes.
This study draws together existing studies within the public domain (predominantly within the UK but also internationally where appropriate) that that have sought to capture, describe, understand and evidence user value when visiting museums and galleries.
This resource can help museums understand its users. The survey is designed to provide accurate, up-to-date information about the characteristics, attitudes and behaviour of Scottish households and individuals on a range of issues.
The National Survey for Wales can help museums understand their users and audience segments.
Focused on providing guidance for HLF funded projects, this resource provides useful general information and guidance for heritage and museum projects.
This is a guide to evaluating community projects, based on work with 20 groups and projects across England and Wales.
This toolkit aims to help organisations understand the different types of evaluation and think about what they are trying to evaluate and how. It provides real, practical, useful examples of evaluation techniques that other people have used and that can be modified.
This website gives access to a range of evaluation guides, tools, and case studies on every aspect of evaluation. It is particularly aimed at third sector organisations and funders.
This presentation by the National Security Adviser for Arts Council England provides information on how to address the security requirements within the Accreditation Scheme.
This resource provides a selection of case studies about volunteering experiences in museums in Northern Ireland.
This resource directly supports the Accreditation Standard and is suitable for all museums. It provides a comprehensive toolkit, resources and case studies to support museums developing a new volunteer initiative.
This resource is aimed at small to medium sized museums and covers the basics of volunteer management and development. It is the result of the Wide Skies project which recruited and trained volunteers in nine Cambridgeshire museums to work with collections and develop learning activities within their communities.
This resource supports organisations in getting started with volunteer inductions and includes orientation, personal introductions, understanding the volunteering role, knowing where to find things and understanding the values and policies of the organisation.
This study from the Association of Independent Museums discusses the broader strategic issues that will influence volunteering in independent museums in forthcoming years.