£4m awarded for museum & gallery displays through DCMS & Wolfson Foundation
Melanie May | 19 January 2017 | News
£4m in grants, jointly funded through the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and the Wolfson Foundation, has been granted to 39 museums and galleries in England for renovation and improvement projects.
The grants have been made under the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund, with the funds aiming to help the beneficiaries increase access, improve displays and enhance public spaces.
The Weald and Downland Museum in Chichester, the Bolton Library and Museum Service, and Leicester Arts and Museum Service are among the recipients.
The Weald and Downland Museum receives £224,500 towards a project to reconstruct two historic buildings dedicated to the production of food, which will develop the museum’s educational programme and the accessibility of its collections. The Bolton Library and Museum Service receives £200,000 towards its First Impressions project which will transform the visitor experience in the 1939 Grade II Listed building, and the Leicester Arts and Museum Service £145,000 to refurbish its Ancient Egyptian Gallery.
Matt Hancock, Minister for Digital and Culture, announced the grants on 17th January, and said:
“Our museums and galleries are among the best in the world and we should be rightly proud of these institutions. We want people to be able to enjoy world-leading culture wherever they live and whatever their background. These grants will make an important contribution toward increasing access to their wonderful collections and improving the visitor experience at museums right across the country.”
This is the twelfth round of a joint fund run by DCMS in partnership with the Wolfson Foundation, which aims to provide capital funding for museums and galleries across England to deliver projects in one or a number of the following key areas:
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- Renovation and improvement of the display of exhibits in permanent galleries and exhibition spaces;
- Improvements to public spaces and access to the collection;
- Physical improvements to access and facilities for disabled visitors;
- Physical improvements to collection interpretation;
- Improvements to environmental controls in public access spaces and galleries.
Information on how to apply is available on the Wolfson Foundation site.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.