Big changes in the government's management of Museums
Following on from the news last week about government funding for museums and heritage, today it has been announced that a number of public bodies relevant to the sector are to 'merged, abolished, or streamlined.' This includes abolishing the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, which will be wound up by April 2012 - details of MLA's response on the MLA website.
Other proposals include abolishing the UK Film Council, the Advisory Council on Libraries, and the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck sites to name a few. The government will also be looking into their "responsibility for heritage and the built environment, and considering the role and remit of English Heritage, the Heritage Lottery Fund and the National Heritage Memorial Fund."
It is vague as to how the remit of bodies like the MLA will be fulfilled in the future - the full ministerial statement states that "Where bodies are to be abolished we will look to transfer key functions to other existing bodies so as to continue to support our sectors and preserve the necessary expertise."
Will the loss of bodies like the MLA be a significant blow to the sector? MLA was by no means perfect but it provided (in some ways) a mediator between the demands/wants of Government and the demands/wants of museums, libraries and archives on the other. It provided a channel for public money to be used in ways that benefited the sector, negotiating the tricky intrinsic / instrumental debate that rages at the heart of funding for culture. Through their programmes they provided a co-ordinated approach for organisations to aspire to - such as Inspiring Learning For All which sought to put learning at the heart of museums, libraries and archives - and ensured that there was a voice for the sector close to government. It remains to be seen what will happen to the sector now.
Other proposals include abolishing the UK Film Council, the Advisory Council on Libraries, and the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck sites to name a few. The government will also be looking into their "responsibility for heritage and the built environment, and considering the role and remit of English Heritage, the Heritage Lottery Fund and the National Heritage Memorial Fund."
It is vague as to how the remit of bodies like the MLA will be fulfilled in the future - the full ministerial statement states that "Where bodies are to be abolished we will look to transfer key functions to other existing bodies so as to continue to support our sectors and preserve the necessary expertise."
Will the loss of bodies like the MLA be a significant blow to the sector? MLA was by no means perfect but it provided (in some ways) a mediator between the demands/wants of Government and the demands/wants of museums, libraries and archives on the other. It provided a channel for public money to be used in ways that benefited the sector, negotiating the tricky intrinsic / instrumental debate that rages at the heart of funding for culture. Through their programmes they provided a co-ordinated approach for organisations to aspire to - such as Inspiring Learning For All which sought to put learning at the heart of museums, libraries and archives - and ensured that there was a voice for the sector close to government. It remains to be seen what will happen to the sector now.
Comments
I've been wondering about this. At first I thought AGH! No!
Then, I thought, perhaps they're right, because there are a LOT of bodies out there which need to be considered as "extraneous" - in as much as there could be more efficient ways of providing essential services, and ways to cut the inessential.
And then I noticed how many 'Heritage' based organisations were up for review, compared to media and sport.
And I began to worry.
I don't really want to descend into a discussion about the fundamental flaws of Western Society which create this sort of problem and can only recursively, temporarily solve it, only solving the problem through reinforcing it and repeating the same error.
Sigh.