Museums and galleries must build relationships outside the cultural sector to ensure their work targeting, supporting and engaging young people plays an effective role in the wider national effort to reach 16 to 25-year-olds, according to those working in this area.
From youth panels and forums to late-night events and affordable exhibition tickets and discounts, opportunities for young people to get involved with heritage exist across the country, but the impact will be limited if the sector works in isolation.
Mark Miller was the national lead of Circuit, a national programme to connect 15 to 25-year-olds to the arts in galleries and museums. The initiative, which ran from 2013 to 2017, was led by Tate and funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Miller, who is the convenor: young people’s programmes at Tate Britain and Tate Modern, says that the sector needs to take an “ecological” approach to working with this age group.
“Museums, galleries and heritage are all part of the bigger picture,” Miller says.
“It is not just us, and we need to build reciprocal and equitable relationships with the youth provision, and other spaces that young people connect with.”
Responsibility to the young
Miller says museums and galleries have a responsibility to engage young people, not only to build new audiences but to diversify the heritage workforce.
Tate launched a free membership scheme, Tate Collective, in April. The scheme is for 16 to 25-year-olds and offers members and up to three of their friends exhibition tickets for £5, and discounts at Tate’s shops and cafes. It follows research that found young people want more affordable access to galleries. Tate also recently announced plans to appoint its first trustee to bring the views of 16 to 25-year-olds to its decision-making process.
The Tate Collective scheme has attracted 11,000 members, with 60% of the take-up in London, 13% across south-east England and the remaining 27% spread across the rest of the country.
“The first thing for young people to recognise is these resources are here for them, whether just to experience or to contribute to as well,” says Miller. “Museums can be social spaces, as well as creative and cultural spaces.”
Cross-sector partnerships
The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) is also seeking to boost cross-sector partnerships through its £10m Kick The Dust funding stream, which focuses on improving youth engagement. Launched last year, the scheme offered first round funding to 12 projects, although it was five times oversubscribed. The HLF was prompted to scale up its work after noting the severe cuts made to youth services, as part of the austerity measures.
Jo Reilly, the head of participation and learning at the HLF, says: “There is a huge cohort that is under-served by heritage.
We wanted to step up and demonstrate leadership to the sector, to do something transformative.”
Alongside the funding, the HLF has created 17 Heritage Ambassadors, known as the DustKickers. Aged between 17 and 24, and based around the country, they had input into which projects the HLF funded.
As part of a city with a young population, Birmingham Museums Trust has had a youth forum since 2012. Eighty 16 to 25-year-olds make up the forum, which has created films, events and tours. This led to it being invited to join The Radical Heritage Project, which is one of the Kick The Dust projects.
The initiative aims to reach young black, Asian and minority ethnic audiences, participants and leaders across the sector. The trust is working with a range of organisations including art collective Free Radical, Chance Glass Works Heritage Trust and the Black Studies Research Cluster.
Transient group
Lynsey Rutter, the community engagement team leader at Birmingham Museums Trust, says it is important for museums to remember that 16 to 25-year-olds can be a transient group, who are keen to get involved but lead busy and often complex lives.
“At 18 they go off to college, and in their early 20s, they get jobs and their priorities shift,” says Rutter. “It is important to be responsive to that.”
From youth panels and forums to late-night events and affordable exhibition tickets and discounts, opportunities for young people to get involved with heritage exist across the country, but the impact will be limited if the sector works in isolation.
Mark Miller was the national lead of Circuit, a national programme to connect 15 to 25-year-olds to the arts in galleries and museums. The initiative, which ran from 2013 to 2017, was led by Tate and funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Miller, who is the convenor: young people’s programmes at Tate Britain and Tate Modern, says that the sector needs to take an “ecological” approach to working with this age group.
“Museums, galleries and heritage are all part of the bigger picture,” Miller says.
“It is not just us, and we need to build reciprocal and equitable relationships with the youth provision, and other spaces that young people connect with.”
Responsibility to the young
Miller says museums and galleries have a responsibility to engage young people, not only to build new audiences but to diversify the heritage workforce.
Tate launched a free membership scheme, Tate Collective, in April. The scheme is for 16 to 25-year-olds and offers members and up to three of their friends exhibition tickets for £5, and discounts at Tate’s shops and cafes. It follows research that found young people want more affordable access to galleries. Tate also recently announced plans to appoint its first trustee to bring the views of 16 to 25-year-olds to its decision-making process.
The Tate Collective scheme has attracted 11,000 members, with 60% of the take-up in London, 13% across south-east England and the remaining 27% spread across the rest of the country.
“The first thing for young people to recognise is these resources are here for them, whether just to experience or to contribute to as well,” says Miller. “Museums can be social spaces, as well as creative and cultural spaces.”
Cross-sector partnerships
The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) is also seeking to boost cross-sector partnerships through its £10m Kick The Dust funding stream, which focuses on improving youth engagement. Launched last year, the scheme offered first round funding to 12 projects, although it was five times oversubscribed. The HLF was prompted to scale up its work after noting the severe cuts made to youth services, as part of the austerity measures.
Jo Reilly, the head of participation and learning at the HLF, says: “There is a huge cohort that is under-served by heritage.
We wanted to step up and demonstrate leadership to the sector, to do something transformative.”
Alongside the funding, the HLF has created 17 Heritage Ambassadors, known as the DustKickers. Aged between 17 and 24, and based around the country, they had input into which projects the HLF funded.
As part of a city with a young population, Birmingham Museums Trust has had a youth forum since 2012. Eighty 16 to 25-year-olds make up the forum, which has created films, events and tours. This led to it being invited to join The Radical Heritage Project, which is one of the Kick The Dust projects.
The initiative aims to reach young black, Asian and minority ethnic audiences, participants and leaders across the sector. The trust is working with a range of organisations including art collective Free Radical, Chance Glass Works Heritage Trust and the Black Studies Research Cluster.
Transient group
Lynsey Rutter, the community engagement team leader at Birmingham Museums Trust, says it is important for museums to remember that 16 to 25-year-olds can be a transient group, who are keen to get involved but lead busy and often complex lives.
“At 18 they go off to college, and in their early 20s, they get jobs and their priorities shift,” says Rutter. “It is important to be responsive to that.”