Museums Sheffield has said it is still in discussions with Sheffield City Council over a long-term solution to its funding problem, following a £190,000 emergency bailout.
An independent financial review commissioned by the council found that the museum service was critically underfunded and
in need of recapitalisation.
The cash injection came three months after the council cut Museums Sheffield’s budget by £172,000.
But the charity, which runs the Millennium Gallery, Weston Park, Graves Gallery and Bishops’ House, said the £190,000 was not intended to replace the budget cut, and was a short-term measure to ease its cashflow problem.
A spokeswoman for Sheffield City Council said negotiations with Museums Sheffield were ongoing, but declined to comment on any future funding settlement.
Museums Sheffield hopes there may be a resolution within the next few weeks, although it is unclear what impact the government’s Comprehensive Spending Review might have.
A spokesman for Museums Sheffield said: “The £190,000 was not a replacement of funding, but about plugging the gap identified by the financial review. Discussions with the council are focusing on how we can move on from the unsustainable position identified in the review.”
Museums Sheffield’s financial troubles stem from the redevelopment of Weston Park in 2006 and the rise in energy costs during 2007-08.