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Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 0
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11
Leonard Pike, View of Worcestershire from the Malverns Acquired for Worcester City's museum collection, 2010
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 1
Museums Worcestershire
Annual Report 2010-11
This is the first annual report for Museums Worcestershire. With options appraisals and business
plans behind us, it's been a year dominated by the need to turn fine words into the reality of working
together as a joint museums service. One of the things I am particularly pleased to report is that, in
spite of all the changes, we have continued to remain focussed on our service to the public. The
following pages contain details of a great programme of exhibitions, events and activities which could
only have been achieved through the commitment of our expanded museum team. My thanks to
them all for their hard work, support and dedication through the year.
Museums Worcestershire is intended to be a rehearsal for the potential leap towards further
independence, as an organisation at arms' length from all the funding partners. We began by
successfully creating new governance arrangements through a joint committee, with support from
MLA West Midlands, and the door remains open for other museums to join us in the future. It has
been widely viewed as a successful example of a shared service in the County and within our sector.
These are of course difficult financial times and our merger has taken place against a background of
a planned £400,000 reduction in museum services over a five year period. This is challenging
enough but the potential change of ownership of Hartlebury Castle, as well as finding a use for the
current home of the City Library when it moves in 2012, adds an unprecedented level of change to
manage along the way.
We have set a course through these choppy waters by renewing our commitment to joint working in a
new forward plan. New and renewed alliances are the way to a more viable and stable future and we
are determined to continue to make progress alongside our partners, supporters and friends.
Iain Rutherford, Museums General Manager
Museums Worcestershire Statement of Purpose
We aim to enrich the lives of people from Worcestershire and beyond, today and for future generations.
We want to inspire them to deepen their knowledge of the City and County and make sense of the world.
We will do this by preserving and interpreting the museum collections and sites; sharing our passion for the
unique art, artefacts and stories that have shaped the identity of Worcestershire and its county town for over
2000 years.
Museums Worcestershire roles are to:
Enable shared experiences, discovery and interaction at the County Museum at Hartlebury Castle, The
Commandery, Worcester City Art Gallery & Museum, Museum on the Move and the joint collections store.
Safeguard the museum collections of Worcester City Council and Worcestershire County Council,
maintaining national standards of care.
Enrich the cultural heritage and future of Worcestershire and beyond.
Expand perspectives and opportunities by supporting other museums and organisations in Worcestershire
and beyond.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 2
Museum Sites
Worcester City Art Gallery & Museum
70,001 visitors; 53 special exhibitions and events
Visitor numbers for exhibition of theatrical costumes by Kate Plumtree gave
us one of highest visitor numbers for the summer period. Linked to this
exhibition we ran a series of workshops for schools in July and also a very
successful summer programme of workshops with the artist – they proved so
popular that we added more to the programme.
Direct support for more than 200 local artists through Worcester Society of
Artists exhibition, the Worcester Open curated by Worcestershire
Contemporary Artists, the residency of the NHS Mental Health Artists group
and the collections research project with artists Alex Gordon and Lynn
Goodwin. The Crafted for You selling exhibition of craftwork increased
income earned.
International press and television interviews about Worcestershire Sauce
artefacts leading to a loan of key artefacts from the Lea & Perrins' collection
owned by Heinz and improvements to the Chemist Shop display to make it
accessible to visitors again.
Loan from the British Museum back to Worcestershire of the Perdiswell Torc
as part of the series of collections-based exhibitions.
Exhibition in partnership with Worcestershire Arts Education – Curiouser and
Curiouser: young children's imaginative journeys. Artists worked with 5
children's centres across the county and inspired by the museum collections
they produced some beautiful art for display.
Worcestershire at War workshops proved popular with local schools and for
the 4th quarter of the year we had our highest number of schools visiting.
Workshops included Dig it Up and Roman Worcestershire, Toys from the
Past, and also a new workshop created for schools Woodland Magic linking
to the natural history collection.
Worcestershire County Museum at Hartlebury Castle
24,872 visitors; 55 special exhibitions and events
Our Easter Event 2010 Alice in Wonderland was the best single day of
visitor numbers ever, attracting 1053 people.
Sell out Murder Mystery events at Hartlebury in November 2010 led to
bookings for private Murder Mystery events and generated more income for
the Cafe.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 3
Our temporary exhibition on the 1950s & 1960s was extremely popular
generating excellent visitor feedback and a lot of press coverage.
We opened our new permanent exhibition which explores the history of
farming and agriculture in Worcestershire.
The Commandery
19,330 visitors; 30 special exhibitions and events
Successful events programme including the highest number of visitors ever
on a single day – Easter Monday 2010 – enjoying the historical fashion show
created in partnership with Worcester Arts & Vintage Events.
Hosting the contemporary art commissions of international artists Cornford &
Cross, funded by Arts Council England through rural arts agency Meadow
Arts.
Partnership developed with the Battle of Worcester Society, with a full
programme of events and re-enactments commemorating the date – leading
up to the 360th anniversary in 2011.
Record number of visits for special family Halloween events as well as
continuing the successful ghostwalks in partnership with Worcester live.
Virtual presence
232,895 website visitors
www.museumsworcestershire.org.uk launch page created.
All museums sites promoting events and exhibitions through Facebook
organisation pages.
Twitter used to invite enquiries about the museums' work; 1786 followers.
Research website launched (www.researchworcestershire.wordpress.com)
to make accessible research about the collections by staff and academics.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 4
Learning and Community Projects
Museum on the Move
5,213 visits to the new exhibition Numbers Count.
Production of a handling box for Museum on the Move in partnership with the
University of Worcester and teacher trainees.
Schools and young people
13,919 visits to the museums from young people aged 0-16
We've undertaken a partnership project with The Trinity Partnership of
Primary Schools in Wyre Forest looking at Gypsy Roma Traveller Heritage
and Culture
Continuing the partnerships with the Severn Valley Railway Education team
on the Classroom at War.
Hartlebury Helpers Club have completed their Campaign Make an Impact
project which was a national initiative in partnership with the British Library.
Community
Funding has been received by the The Odell Centre in Kidderminster to work
with the County Museum on a story quilts project inspired by the museum
collection
We've undertaken a continuing programme of volunteer recruitment from the
community, from Worcestershire schools and from universities across the country.
Audience Development
Since the services joined in April 2010 we have completed
a major re-branding exercise. A thorough process including
staff consultation and external focus groups resulted in the
chosen name, Museums Worcestershire.
The brand was completed by the creation of logos, design templates, colour palettes and branding
guidelines which ensure that the brand is used correctly and effectively at all times. The next step is
now underway to build the brand image and public/peer recognition of the new name.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 5
Friends and Partners
During the year there have been several initiatives that benefitted the wider museums community of
the county:
16 members of staff from Worcestershire museums achieved
their C&G accredited Welcome host Gold qualification in
customer service.
10 museums submitted successful bids to the small grant
fund, administered by the county's Museum Development
Officer on behalf of Renaissance West Midlands. This fund
enables museums to make small but important changes to
improve their standards and services.
Following the success of the original regional Mystery
Shopper programme in 2009-10 a second phase was carried
out in 2010-11. Four venues in the county received a visit
from a shopper based in Warwickshire, who were our
partners in the project. Each report looked at the total visitor
experience and highlighted both successes and areas for
improvement. It was good to see that two venues that had
been visited in the original programme were able to
demonstrate clear improvements by the time of their repeat
visit.
Both Malvern Museum and the Research Department of the
University of Worcester were supported in introducing an
environmental monitoring programme to collect reliable data
and improve conditions for stored and displayed objects.
The Almonry Museum at Evesham received advice and support in preparing an imaginative bid to
the Heritage Lottery Fund, which should be submitted later in 2011.
Tenbury Museum has also been given in-depth mentoring and support as it moves to a new
pattern of governance and undertakes improvements to its building and displays.
The Ashmolean in Broadway
An imaginative scheme to bring an outstation of Oxford's world-famous Ashmolean Museum to
Broadway has progressed steadily with support from Museums Worcestershire. A Steering Group
has been formed to take the idea forward, and work on surveying the property that could house the
collection has been undertaken. It is anticipated that, external funding permitting, the new centre
would open its doors in the second half of 2012.
Small Grant Fund Case Study
At Tudor House Heritage Centre in Worcester an initial visit from Museum Worcestershire's Young Consultants highlighted the need for more interactivity for younger visitors.
As a result a character trail was developed using small grant funding, as well as the provision of some dressing-up costumes and audio in one of the rooms.
Small Grant Fund Case Study
In Elgar Birthplace Museum visitor feedback had pointed out the lack of seating for elderly visitors, a core part of their audience.
An appropriate solution was found with the purchase of some lightweight, portable seats that now provide a more comfortable experience for the visitor and encourage them to stay for longer.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 6
Museum Friends
For Museums Worcestershire's two support groups – the County Museum Society and the Friends of
Worcester City Museum – 2010-11 took them a step closer to a shared future. For the past few years
informal co-operation and linkages have existed between the two groups, with members enjoying
talks and visits organised by both. Decisions made by both groups at their respective AGMs early in
2011 will pave the way for a single, amalgamated Friends group for Museums Worcestershire, which
will come into being later in 2011.
During the past year the County Museum Society has continued its policy of providing financial help
for collection conservation by supporting the essential rewiring of the Castle three-wheel car and by
purchasing materials required for the creation of a two-thirds scale gypsy caravan.
The Marches Network
For over ten years Worcestershire has been one of the members of the Marches Curators Group
(MCG), an un-constituted regional support body that has been able to secure significant funding from
Renaissance West Midlands. As the national and regional agencies for the sector have been
changing so the MCG has decided to transform itself into a formally constituted group, the Marches
Network. This will enable us to bid for other funding streams and to work with other partners, and the
new structure should be in place later in 2011.
Partners
Over 2010-11, Museums Worcestershire have achieved projects in partnership with
Abberley & Malvern Geopark
Art in Minds
Battle of Worcester Society
BBC History of the World project
British Library
British Museum
Christopher Whitehead Language College
Contemporary Art Society
Dame Laura Knight Society, Malvern Branch
Discover History
Elmley Foundation
Friends of Worcester City Museums
Hartlebury Castle Preservation Trust
Lea & Perrins (Heinz)
Marches Network
Meadow Arts
Museums, Libraries and Archives Council
Odell Centre
Other museums in Worcestershire
Renaissance in Regions West Midlands board
Rural Museums Network
Severn Valley Railway
Thinktank, Birmingham
University of Worcester
W-CA
Woodrow, Redditch
Worcester Archive Source Project
Worcester Arts and Vintage Events
Worcester Heritage Partnership
Worcester Live
Worcestershire Arts Education
Worcestershire County Museum Society
Worcestershire Guild of Designer Craftsmen
Worcestershire Gypsy Roma Traveller Partnership
Worcestershire Historic Environment & Archaeology
Service
Worcestershire Libraries
Worcestershire Regimental Museum Trust
Worcestershire Yeomanry Museum Trust
Wyre Forest Gold
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 7
Museum Collections
Acquired for the Worcester City Council collections
Object Accession
A selection of election materials mentioning specific Worcester issues posted to households in Worcester by candidates for the 2010 general election. Donation.
2010.6
Watercolour by 20th century Worcester artist Albert Hodder depicting a city scene.
Donation. 2010.7
Pastel drawing by 20th century Malvern artist Catherine Moody depicting the artist
Bernard Dunstan teaching a life drawing class. Purchased at auction for £75. 2010.8
Oil painting View of Worcestershire from the Malverns by 20th century Worcester
artist Leonard Pike. Purchased from private owner for £500. 2010.9
Hymn book and book of common prayer given to pupil attending Victoria Institute. Donation.
2010.42
Four 18th century oil and pastel portraits of the Jeffries family from Blakebrook
House, Kidderminster. Allocated to Worcester City collection under the acceptance in lieu of tax scheme.
2010.43.1-4
Watercolour by 20th century Worcester artist Drinkwater depicting a Market
Scene. Donation. 2010.44
Archive from St Johns Sports Centre and Sainsburys site excavation. Deposit from archaeological unit.
2010.45
Archive from Tything site excavation. Deposit from archaeological unit. 2011.1
Early 20th century artist instruction manuals written by artists represented in the
Worcester collection, RO Dunlop and Oswald Garside. Donation. 2011.2
Acquired for the Worcestershire County Council collections
Object Accession
Catalogue for Worcestershire-made Castle Three car. Donation. 4133
Lady's Royal Enfield bicycle, 1962, made in Redditch. Donation. 4134
Pye radio 1955 : scythe : Projector 1936 : Mamod model engine used in Worcestershire. Do nation.
4135
Bromsgrove Guild glass from Regent Palace Hotel, London. Donation. 4136
Bush 9 television set 1953 used in Worcestershire. Donation. 4137
Collection of kitchen domestic items used in Worcestershire 1950s. Donation. 4138
Romano British flat dish, Worcestershire archaeological find. Donation. 4139
Seventeenth century horse pistol used in Worcestershire. Donation. 4140
Lady's Royal Enfield bicycle 1905, made in Redditch. Donation. 4141
School photograph Queen Elizabeth's School, Hartlebury 1926. Donation. 4142
Working horse collar and bridle, purchased for £225 for display in the County Museum new agricultural gallery.
4143
3 items of early 20th century school equipment from St John's School,
Kidderminster. Donation. 4144
Spearhead, Worcestershire archaeological find. Donation. 4145
1920s caravan owned by a Worcestershire family. Donation. 4146
Nameplate of Castle Motor Co. Ltd. Kidderminster. Donation. 4147
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 8
Committee, Staff and Volunteers
Joint Museums Committee
Chairman: Mr P Gretton, Worcestershire County Council
Vice Chairman: Mr D Tibbutt, Worcester City Council
Mr A Blagg, Worcestershire County Council
Mr F Lankester, Worcester City Council
Independent Observer: Michael Cooke, Museums, Libraries and Archives Council
Permanent, temporary and casual staff
Christine Afford
Shelagh Allen
Pippa Ashmore
Tracey Ayre-Massey
Angie Bishop
Anita Blythe
Sarah Bourne
Dave Bradley
Janet Bright-Martin-
White
Carol Campbell
Jonathan Darby
Natalie Digger
Lin Fenson
Deborah Fox
Amanda Fretwell
Mari Griffiths
Chris Hallam
David Harris
Doreen Harris
Trevor Harris
Sue Hetherington
Robin Hill
Simon Holroyd
David Jarratt
Tom Kenderdine
David Kendrick
Felicity Knox
Pat Laidler
Nicky Lawrence
Helen Lee
Helen Marsh Nigel Marshall
Peter McInery
Ali Mclean
Malcolm Meacham
Chloe Murdoch
David Nash
Karen Oliver-Spry
Ron Owen
Garston Phillips
Kate Phillipson
Sue Pope
Stephanie Price
Sue Rickhuss
Vicki Roberts
Rachel Robinson
Iain Rutherford
Julie Smith
Matthew Smith
Steve Smith
Philippa Tinsley
Diana Wake
Maggie Wallace
Jean Whalley
Suz Winspear
Alex Woodward
We welcomed new staff members:
Carly Bishop, Zoe Bishop, Jo Boulton, Jo Bourke, Victoria Goodhall, John Lissemore, Bryony
McFarlane and Jan Westcott.
We said goodbye to valued staff members:
Annika Burt, Dan Roach and Daniel Stirland; Pat Laidlaw retired after working as a regular staff
member for the city museums for 30 years, but is still working with us as a casual.
Volunteers
All three museums have welcomed the contribution of work experience placements from local
schools and university undergraduate and postgraduate students from across the world.
The County Museum recruited 5 new workshop volunteers with a variety of specialist skills, including
a blacksmith and an arboriculturalist.
Worcester City Museums volunteer group of Rob Lythe, Helen Kirkup, Christine Sylvester, Janet
Hogg and Lynda Evans continued working with the archaeological collections and specialist
volunteers Rosemary Roden and David Green researched and curated the geology and beetle
collections.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 9
Professional Expertise and Awards
Professional Activities
Members of the Museums Worcestershire team volunteer their expertise on the following
professional committees
Group for Education in Museums (Co-convenor, West Midlands)
Learning Worcestershire (Chair)
Midlands Federation of Museums & Art Galleries (President)
Abberley & Malvern Hills Geopark
Council for British Archaeology
Museums Association, AMA Mentor
Museums Association, AMA Professional Reviewer
Museums, Libraries & Archives Council Fast Forward Panel
Rural Museums Network
West Midlands Archaeological Curators Research Unit
West Midlands Natural Sciences Curators Group
Worcestershire Archaeological Society
Awards
Visit England’s Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance standard achieved at all three museums.
Sandford Award for Heritage Education won by Museum on the Move.
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 10
Performance Indicators
PI Description Totals
2009/2010 2010/2011
1 Number of visits in person per 1,000 population 223.19 213.62
(124,426 visits) (119,416 visits)
a City Museum and Art Gallery 72,843 70,001
b The Commandery 17,774 19,330
c County Museum, Hartlebury 26,342 24,872
d Museum on the Move 7,467 5,213
2 Number of virtual visits via website 222,172 232,895
a City Museums and Art Gallery 204,225 215,901
b County Museum, Hartlebury 17,947 16,994
3 Number of enquiries per 1,000 population 0.74 0.73
a City Museums and Art Gallery 305 372
b County Museum, Hartlebury 110 34
4 Organised events and exhibitions n/a 138
a City Museum and Art Gallery n/a 53
b The Commandery n/a 30
c County Museum, Hartlebury n/a 55
5 Usage by children/younger people (0 - 16 years) 14,430 13,919
a City Museum and Art Gallery 884 1,597
b The Commandery 4,014 2,952
c County Museum, Hartlebury 9,532 9,370
1 Retail spend per head (turnover from retail outlets)
a City Museum and Art Gallery
£0.69
b The Commandery
£0.52
c County Museum, Hartlebury
£0.80
2 Cost per visit or usage (net expenditure divided by physical visits or usages total)
a City Museum and Art Gallery
£3.13
b The Commandery
£13.16
c County Museum, Hartlebury
£14.32
3 Level of earned income as percentage of subsidy
a City Museum and Art Gallery
61.05%
b The Commandery
36.75%
c County Museum, Hartlebury
41.84%
Museums Worcestershire Annual Report 2010-11 page 11
Annual Accounts 2010-11
Budget, £000 Outturn, £000 Variance, £000
Employees 995 956 -39
Premises 8 6 -2
Transport 12 16 4
Supplies & services 272 253 -19
Income
Sales -152 -131 21
Admissions -113 -84 29
Other, incl grants -176 -170 6
Total 846 846 0
Grants received 2010-11
Age Concern £100
BBC Learning Campaign, Dig it Up workshops £75.00
Campaign Make An Impact £328.46
County Museum Society £1200
Engage National Children's Art Day, event with Kate Plumtree £50
Engage, National Children's Art Day, work with schools £50
Learning Links Mentoring Placement Museums, Libraries & Archives Council £1500
Museums, Libraries & Archives Council, developing a shared service strategy for
Worcestershire
£5,000
Museums, Libraries & Archives Council, Mystery Shopper Family Friendly Project £200
Renaissance Training, Supporting Diversity £650
Rural Media Company £100
Science in Museums Inspiring Learning & Engagement network, geology resource boxes £250
Thinktank, Hartlebury Helpers Club £150
West Mercia Constabulary £500
Worcestershire Regimental Museums Trust, Loans box £100
Worcs Family Intervention Project £250
Wyre Forest Community Housing £500