Salford Museum and Art Gallery In 2008 Salford Museum and Art Gallery underwent a Collections Review of its Egyptology Collection. This was part of a Pilot Project supported by Renaissance North West and documented in the publication ‘What’s in Store’. Reviewing collections was and is seen as vital for any museum considering the long term development of its collection. As well as enabling responsible disposal decisions. In the case of Salford Museum & Art Gallery, there were wider considerations. The museum service was only one part of a much larger local authority which has its own objectives and business plan. Salford Council’s plans include pledges relating to “educational attainment”, “visits to museums”, “celebrating and supporting our cultural diversity” and the image of Salford as a tourist destination and a place to live and invest, all of which the use of a collection could help attain. The Museum and Heritage Service together with Arts Development and Libraries were transferred to a Leisure and Culture trust in May 2010. At the end of the review, presented with a comprehensive report John Sculley, Museum Manager asked “How do we achieve the right decisions, informed by expert recommendations, to ensure the best outcomes for museum collections? It sounds easy. Sadly, as with all well researched, balanced and comprehensive reports, Salford’s ancient Egyptology collections review seems to offer more difficult questions than easy answers.” Given Salford’s ambitions for the Museum’s future, which intends to focus on social history from 1750, was there any likelihood of the collection ever being put to better public use? It was not suitable for handling so it would be difficult to keep as an educational resource. It seems then, that Salford held a large collection in store that could not contribute, to any council agendas – education, economic development, tourism and so on. The professional case for disposal was strong. However, as a public service facility, Salford Museum also has a duty to consider the views of the City’s residents and stakeholders. The report offered a real opportunity to engage with local people to raise understanding and appreciation of collections and involve them in the decision making process. Three levels of consultation were undertaken, staff, museum stakeholder and the public. All consultations took the form of a power-‐point presentation followed by discussion and question and answer sessions. Each consultation was led by John Sculley supported by the outreach officer, Naomi Lewis, who has a learning background which includes Egyptology. The consultation period began November 2009 and was completed April 2010. Participants were offered three options regarding the Egyptology Collection; keep it, dispose of it, offer it to other appropriate museums with the expertise to make best use of it. Option Three won easily. However, the political landscape has shifted. As we are all aware, the coalition government has made arrangements to reduce public spending substantially over the next four years. All public sector services, including Salford Museums, are engaged in comprehensive reviews that are intended to save substantial proportions of current expenditure. There are no easy solutions and the impact of this review is likely to change the face and nature of
public service throughout the country for good. As John Sculley, Museums and Heritage Services Manager says, ‘Ancient Egyptology is not something we would want to take to our lead member at the moment, there are other more pressing issues now’. Further information John Sculley, Museums and Heritage Services Manager, john.sculley@salford.gov.uk
For the initial Collections Review Pilot project -‐ Paul Fraser Webb, Consultant paul@paul-‐ fraser-‐webb.co.uk For current Collections reviews in the North West – Sarah Cooper, Accreditation, Standards & Review Officer sarah.cooper-‐2@manchester.ac.uk ‘What’s in Store’ pdf file available here http://i.dmtrk.com/CmpDoc/2008/479/270_collections-‐review-‐in-‐the-‐north-‐west.pdf