Scottish museums would welcome more cohesive leadership and greater clarity on the available funding for VisitScotland’s Year Of programme.
This year’s theme of History, Heritage and Archaeology has been hailed a success by venues, with a huge variety of projects developed. The programme launched in 2009 and has been extended to 2020.
Nicola Wilson, the collections curator at Fife Cultural Trust and a Museums Association (MA) representative for Scotland, says: “It is a positive programme because it promotes domestic tourism, as well as international. A range of museums, galleries and other venues has really engaged with it this year.”
Alongside a flurry of local events, projects have included National Museums Scotland’s nationwide partnership with Historic Environment Scotland, National Trust of Scotland and the Palace of Holyroodhouse to create On the Trail of Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites.
Shetland Heritage staged a Viking Festival in September, and Dig It!, the country’s archaeology network, has discovered Scotland’s best-loved hidden gems through a vote on Facebook.
Christine McLean, the community engagement manager at National Museums Scotland and also an MA rep for Scotland, says: “Museums and galleries have grasped this opportunity and there has been a packed programme throughout the calendar year, and across the country, offering free guided walks, tours, exhibitions and events for all ages and audiences.”
But one of the challenges faced by the sector is finding out about what funding is available and how to access it.
McLean says there is some funding for each Year Of available from Event Scotland, Museums Galleries Scotland and, in 2017, from the Heritage Lottery Fund, plus some other sources. But she says there are many ways to get involved.
“Canny museums can ‘brand’ activities they would already be doing to highlight their collections, sites and programmes,” adds McLean. “There is lots of information to support the sector, with a Year Of toolkit and guidance on the benefits of using branding through to where to find funding for events.”
The MA’s third Scottish rep, the National Trust for Scotland’s Kathleen Boal, says accessing funding can be challenging.
“It is not naturally museum funding and that means having to be more entrepreneurial,” she says. “That’s a good thing, but sometimes museums lack the essential skills to do that.”
Kirsty Clarke, the lifelong learning officer at Shetland Museum & Archives, says the Year Of programme has helped her organisation to develop new audiences and find new partners with whom to work.
However, she says that Shetland Museum & Archives’ involvement is down to having a VisitScotland representative who is good at speaking to all the relevant organisations.
“If it was not for our proactive VisitScotland manager, I don’t know if our experience would be so positive,” adds Clarke.
Next year’s Young People theme has already created lots of interest, with many seeing it as an opportunity to create targeted events to build new audiences, as well as create a platform for young people to get involved with the sector.
Boal says she wants to see “properly collaborative” projects that will interest young people in the long term, rather than “tokenistic” attempts to engage them.
This year’s theme of History, Heritage and Archaeology has been hailed a success by venues, with a huge variety of projects developed. The programme launched in 2009 and has been extended to 2020.
Nicola Wilson, the collections curator at Fife Cultural Trust and a Museums Association (MA) representative for Scotland, says: “It is a positive programme because it promotes domestic tourism, as well as international. A range of museums, galleries and other venues has really engaged with it this year.”
Alongside a flurry of local events, projects have included National Museums Scotland’s nationwide partnership with Historic Environment Scotland, National Trust of Scotland and the Palace of Holyroodhouse to create On the Trail of Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites.
Shetland Heritage staged a Viking Festival in September, and Dig It!, the country’s archaeology network, has discovered Scotland’s best-loved hidden gems through a vote on Facebook.
Christine McLean, the community engagement manager at National Museums Scotland and also an MA rep for Scotland, says: “Museums and galleries have grasped this opportunity and there has been a packed programme throughout the calendar year, and across the country, offering free guided walks, tours, exhibitions and events for all ages and audiences.”
But one of the challenges faced by the sector is finding out about what funding is available and how to access it.
McLean says there is some funding for each Year Of available from Event Scotland, Museums Galleries Scotland and, in 2017, from the Heritage Lottery Fund, plus some other sources. But she says there are many ways to get involved.
“Canny museums can ‘brand’ activities they would already be doing to highlight their collections, sites and programmes,” adds McLean. “There is lots of information to support the sector, with a Year Of toolkit and guidance on the benefits of using branding through to where to find funding for events.”
The MA’s third Scottish rep, the National Trust for Scotland’s Kathleen Boal, says accessing funding can be challenging.
“It is not naturally museum funding and that means having to be more entrepreneurial,” she says. “That’s a good thing, but sometimes museums lack the essential skills to do that.”
Kirsty Clarke, the lifelong learning officer at Shetland Museum & Archives, says the Year Of programme has helped her organisation to develop new audiences and find new partners with whom to work.
However, she says that Shetland Museum & Archives’ involvement is down to having a VisitScotland representative who is good at speaking to all the relevant organisations.
“If it was not for our proactive VisitScotland manager, I don’t know if our experience would be so positive,” adds Clarke.
Next year’s Young People theme has already created lots of interest, with many seeing it as an opportunity to create targeted events to build new audiences, as well as create a platform for young people to get involved with the sector.
Boal says she wants to see “properly collaborative” projects that will interest young people in the long term, rather than “tokenistic” attempts to engage them.