Sharing Treasures was launched in 2002 to increase access to national collections by enabling local museums to build partnerships with Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales. Since then, the scheme has awarded £55,000 each year. The deadline for applications for 2010-11 is 25 January.
Funding has helped improve environmental and security standards, which has allowed museums to display objects from national collections. Ten local museums in Wales now have the standards required for loans from National Museum Wales. The scheme is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government and administered by CyMAL: Museums, Archives and Libraries Wales.
But this could be the last chance for museums to benefit from Sharing Treasures in its current form, as the scheme will be reviewed this year.
The deadline for another funding scheme run by CyMAL, Innovation and Development grants, is also 25 January. These run alongside Opportunity grants and provide money for projects that fall into four areas: access audits and audit implementation; caring for collections; community engagement and service enhancement; and workforce/organisational development. More than £1.2m is available under this funding stream.
- The Heritage Lottery Fund’s Skills for the Future grant programme is open for applications. The £5m initiative will deliver up to 1,000 paid training opportunities across the UK for people seeking a career in heritage. Applications can range from £100,000 to £1m and the deadline is 19 March.
Simon Stephens
