Embedding participatory practice

In November 2018 the PHF published Our Museum: What Happened Next? which shares further learning from the programme two years on.

It states: “True participatory practice opens up the museum/gallery to community voices and agendas and requires commitment and confidence to work in a reciprocal, flexible and less hierarchical way. Museums and galleries need to be ready for that challenge.”

When considering a shift to a more participatory model, the report recommends undertaking a self-assessment check that there is good practice across the organisation in governance, finance and staff management.

After this, the main reason why change can be difficult was found to be that staff “do not really know what the change might be, they do not know what to expect, and do not know what they are committing themselves to” – with the added difficulty that “change” is often understood to mean redundancies.

It recommends clearly explaining the reasons for change, how long it might take, and ensuring that a shared understanding of terms such as “participatory practice” is reached.

Museum leadership was found to be a crucial factor: directors have a huge impact on an organisation’s values, vision and mission, it says. Changes of directors can lead to patchy development of a participatory culture, with lack of continuity in relationships and in transferring learning.

Constantly reiterating the participatory message is also important, “to ensure it is acknowledged as a priority”, at all levels and all meetings. The report recommends designating a member of the board to take responsibility for participation so that its progress does not rely on the enthusiasm of individual board members.

Museum systems and processes are identified as a potential barrier, and may need to be adapted, especially around collections and who is involved in access, handling, loans, documentation, interpretation, acquisition and disposal, in order to embed participatory practice successfully.

The report also highlights the need for reflexive practice – being self-critical and learning from what went well – suggesting several ways to build this into daily practice (p20).

The report found that the majority of participants had managed to form long-term relationships with community partners, with common elements of these successful relationships including:

• The museum is welcoming, relaxed and non-threatening
• The museum is proactive, supportive and flexible, ready to accommodate different groups and their changing plans and needs
• Relationships begin with open conversations, and ideas are jointly developed rather than fixed
• Partners feel they have agency in a creative, mutually beneficial relationship
• Creating trust in a genuine, long-term, developing relationship
• A lead member of staff who is passionate and welcoming
• Community partners feel able to challenge
• Community partners are kept informed, sent minutes of meetings, and given feedback on the project
• Collaboration is often in-kind rather than monetary, making it more sustainable