Getting Your House In Order programme 2023-24 – open for applications

We are seeking applications from museums to join our Getting Your House In Order programme for 2023-24. Run jointly by Collections Trust, Museum Development North West, Museum Development North East and Museum Development Yorkshire, this programme will take a cohort of museums from across the North through a programme of workshops and 1-2-1 support.

The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, inflationary costs and increased energy bills are putting museums in financially precarious situations. Added to this are museums that may be affected by upcoming local government reorganisations, major stores moves or other large-scale changes to the way in which their museum, and collections, are governed and operated. If not now, possibly in the future, museums may be looking at insolvency, merger with another museum, splitting up the collection or putting it in a separate trust.

The actions required to manage the collections in order for these to happen responsibly are the same as how any museum collection should be managed to make it accountable and useable in any circumstances – but these scenarios add an extra pressure or urgency to make sure your collections documentation is adequate.

Using the framework of Spectrum 5.1 and its procedures, this programme will provide focus and support around the planning and work required for museums to get their collections documentation in order.

By joining the programme, you will receive:

Guaranteed priority places on each of the workshops
Flexibility for multiple staff/volunteers to attend the programme
1-2-1 support from Collections Trust staff, to be taken up at a point in the programme that suits you
Flexibility for the 1-2-1 support to be online, or could be face-to-face depending on need and location

To join the programme your museum needs to:

allow staff/volunteers to attend training as part of the programme
allow time to plan and work on documentation priorities throughout the year
commit to attend workshops – dates and workshop details are in GYHIO workshops 2023-24, workshop programme

We recommend that 2-3 individuals from each organisation are signed up to the programme to help maintain momentum back at the museum.

How to apply:
Fill in the Expression of Interest here by 5pm Friday 31st March 2023. The form has to be completed in one go, answers can’t be saved and returned to so a copy of the EOI questions is here – GYHIO EOI questions.

Once the cohort museums have been recruited, the remaining places on each of the workshops will be advertised through MDNW, MDY and MDNE’s open training programme.