The ancient Downpatrick High Cross, which has been restored to take centre stage in a new Christian heritage gallery at Down County Museum in Downpatrick
In April, Northern Ireland’s 26 councils were replaced by 11 super-councils. The change in governance has affected the country’s 38 accredited local museums, not least the 19 council-run institutions.
Business plans are being put together and collection strategies and outreach programmes are under review, but many of the new councils are still establishing structures for museum services.
Down District Council’s museum service was under leisure and culture, but now falls under economic regeneration and tourism as part of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council.
A new post of director of economic regeneration and tourism was filled in April and, at the time of going to press, an assistant director was being recruited. But it was still not clear whether museums would have their own head beneath the assistant director.
Despite this uncertainty, Mike King, the assistant director of museums, arts and heritage at Down District Council, thinks the merger is a positive thing. “There is huge potential for outdoor tourism and museums, heritage and the arts working together to increase footfall,” he says.
The change has not affected revenue funding, which has been at a “standstill”, says King. Nor has it had an impact on the £600,000 extension to the Down County Museum, which houses the Downpatrick High Cross and opens in September. In fact, he says, the new council has increased the marketing budget for the project.
Sarah McHugh, the manager of museum services at the newly formed Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, tells a similar story. A £3m project to redevelop Enniskillen Castle has not been affected, she says, but there will be an impact in terms of how the museum service is delivered.
There are possibilities for partnership working with other organisations in the new region and an awareness that everything needs to be assessed, she adds, but the council is “exploring the options” without rushing into anything.
For independent museums, many of which are struggling to survive, the expanded areas mean there will be more applicants for the handful of council grants available, says Selwyn Johnston, the curator of the Headhunters Railway Museum in Enniskillen.
His museum received a £1,000 grant from Fermanagh District Council last year and is waiting to hear whether a grant application for £3,000 from the new council this year has been successful.
The changes also saw Armagh County Museum move from National Museums Northern Ireland to the new Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. Staff and ownership of the collections and building have transferred over.
But it is not just at a local level that things are in flux. It was revealed in March that the Department for Culture and Leisure would move under the newly formed Department for Communities in 2016.
This, combined with the emphasis on community planning in the Local Government Act, passed last year, “shows the direction of travel”, says Jayne Clarke, the museum and heritage manager of Mid-Antrim Museums Service.
Communities are now at the heart of museums at local authority level, she says, and new performance indicators for cultural services may reflect this. “This is an opportunity to assess where we are at and look at working on a bigger scale.”
In April, Northern Ireland’s 26 councils were replaced by 11 super-councils. The change in governance has affected the country’s 38 accredited local museums, not least the 19 council-run institutions.
Business plans are being put together and collection strategies and outreach programmes are under review, but many of the new councils are still establishing structures for museum services.
Down District Council’s museum service was under leisure and culture, but now falls under economic regeneration and tourism as part of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council.
A new post of director of economic regeneration and tourism was filled in April and, at the time of going to press, an assistant director was being recruited. But it was still not clear whether museums would have their own head beneath the assistant director.
Despite this uncertainty, Mike King, the assistant director of museums, arts and heritage at Down District Council, thinks the merger is a positive thing. “There is huge potential for outdoor tourism and museums, heritage and the arts working together to increase footfall,” he says.
The change has not affected revenue funding, which has been at a “standstill”, says King. Nor has it had an impact on the £600,000 extension to the Down County Museum, which houses the Downpatrick High Cross and opens in September. In fact, he says, the new council has increased the marketing budget for the project.
Sarah McHugh, the manager of museum services at the newly formed Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, tells a similar story. A £3m project to redevelop Enniskillen Castle has not been affected, she says, but there will be an impact in terms of how the museum service is delivered.
There are possibilities for partnership working with other organisations in the new region and an awareness that everything needs to be assessed, she adds, but the council is “exploring the options” without rushing into anything.
For independent museums, many of which are struggling to survive, the expanded areas mean there will be more applicants for the handful of council grants available, says Selwyn Johnston, the curator of the Headhunters Railway Museum in Enniskillen.
His museum received a £1,000 grant from Fermanagh District Council last year and is waiting to hear whether a grant application for £3,000 from the new council this year has been successful.
The changes also saw Armagh County Museum move from National Museums Northern Ireland to the new Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. Staff and ownership of the collections and building have transferred over.
But it is not just at a local level that things are in flux. It was revealed in March that the Department for Culture and Leisure would move under the newly formed Department for Communities in 2016.
This, combined with the emphasis on community planning in the Local Government Act, passed last year, “shows the direction of travel”, says Jayne Clarke, the museum and heritage manager of Mid-Antrim Museums Service.
Communities are now at the heart of museums at local authority level, she says, and new performance indicators for cultural services may reflect this. “This is an opportunity to assess where we are at and look at working on a bigger scale.”
