Welcome to your November Newsletter
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In October we published the results of the 2026 Annual Museum Survey (AMS). But what do the results mean for your museum? You can now find on our website our benchmarking tool and indexes of analysis, which can help you see where your museum sits in a diverse and changing sector. Don't forget to sign up for our AMS Power Hour on Tuesday 17 November, which will discuss the survey results and how to use these new tools.
In this month's newsletter we have an update on our National Lottery Heritage Fund project Connected for Change, and our Focus On feature highlights how museums in Dorset are working together to improve their retail offer with thanks to grant funding.
We have also added new Roots and Branches sessions to our SW Museum Skills programme. These green training opportunities include Carbon Literacy for Museums, Demystifying Retrofit and Adaptation in Museum Buildings, Connect for Climate sessions and much more.
In addition you can expect all your usual sector news, grants and upcoming sector opportunities. |
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We’re pleased to share the updated Annual Museum Survey 2026 benchmarking tool and index of analysis, which have been created to help museums across the South West understand how they compare with similar organisations across England.
Using data from more museum sites than ever, the benchmarking tool highlights sector trends and supports evidence‑based planning. Expanded museum profiles offer an easy way to compare your museum with others of a similar size and same governance type. These profiles group museums into three clear categories - micro, small/medium, and large/largest - based on visitor numbers. They make it simpler to see what’s typical for organisations like yours, from visitor levels and donations to staffing and volunteering.
Alongside these profiles, the tool includes median figures and ranges to help you set realistic targets and advocate for resources with confidence.
The index of analysis presents medians and percentiles for museums of different types (ie governance types, sizes), locations (Office for National Statistics regions, Arts Council England areas) and other factors (such as being a volunteer-led organisation, National Portfolio Organisation). |
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Connected for Change activity has been gathering pace since it launched six months ago. Peers are connecting across the region - museum professionals and volunteers are coming together to share learning, tackle challenges and create more inclusive museum experiences.
Connected for Change's local Connect Groups are now established across Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, West of England, Dorset and Wiltshire, with regular online meetings. These groups provide supportive spaces for museums to exchange experiences, discuss challenges and explore practical approaches to welcoming.
A key milestone has been the recruitment of 16 Peer Champions who are developing their skills as advocates for inclusion within the heritage sector. Alongside dedicated development opportunities, Peer Champions are joining local Connect Groups to share expertise, experience and help shape conversations around equality, diversity, inclusion and belonging. You can hear from some of them in our latest blog.
Together, the Connect Groups and Peer Champions are strengthening support across the sector. Consider joining your local Connect Group and contribute to the conversation! Find out more by contacting your local Museum Development Officer or email us.
Don’t forget to book on to our free Peer Networking Sessions as well. Supported by Peer Champions, these themed sessions create space for open and constructive conversations about inclusion, care and belonging in the heritage sector. |
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Collaborative and supportive networking has consistently been a strength of the primarily volunteer-run museums within rural North Dorset. For over a decade the group has met regularly to share ideas, provide peer support, participate in training and develop a range of projects.
This year sees the delivery of the network's Savvy Shops initiative, a progressive programme designed to support participating museums to actively increase their retail skills and knowledge and to optimise income generation from their shop operations. All the museums are having to work with increased expenditure, so retail income is viewed as a very important and valued source of unrestricted funds.
The programme encompasses bespoke group training and expert led, individual site audits which will appraise shop positioning and visitor flow, layout and fixtures, product range and pricing, visual merchandising and retail customer service. Tailored retail development plans will then be produced and shared within the group to facilitate retail peer support across the network over the next year.
This is all being supported by combining our Capacity Builder grants and a project development grant from Dorset Council. We hope this will provide an opportunity for continued group learning and perhaps even some strategic group purchasing!
The project partners are Blandford Fashion Museum, Blandford Town Museum, Gold Hill Museum, Shaftesbury Abbey Museum & Sherborne Museum |
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Museums + Heritage Awards - New Categories Announced
You can enter the Museums + Heritage Awards from today. For this year's awards the categories have been refreshed with new names, tweaked criteria and a brand-new Best Collections and Collecting Project award.
Shortlisting and winning puts your team’s work in front of the whole sector. It brings national recognition, a boost for staff morale and a strong story to tell your funders, stakeholders and visitors. But you have to be in it to win it!
For further information and to enter take a look at the M+H awards website. |
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National Portfolio Investment Programme 2028-33
The application portal for the National Portfolio Investment Programme 2028-33 is now open. Applications close at 12 noon on 15 December 2026.
Resources and information for prospective applicants are available here:
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New Freelancers' Handbook from Arts Council England
Arts Council England (ACE) has published The Freelancers’ Handbook, a practical set of resources designed to help support the needs of freelancers, who make up 30% of the cultural workforce.
While it is intended primarily as an aid for cultural freelancers, its combination of guidance and good practice can also act as a handy reference tool for cultural organisations who commission or work with them. ACE will continue to develop, expand and refine the Handbook's contents, and it is accompanied by an online resources directory which will be regularly updated. |
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Art Fund Museum of the Year 2027
Art Fund Museum of the Year 2027 is open for applications until Thursday 7 January 2027. The winner will receive £120,000 and the four remaining finalists will receive £20,000 each.
All shortlisted organisations will receive support from Art Fund during the campaign to help them reach more audiences. This can include national press coverage, bespoke marketing support, and other collaborations.
For the 2027 prize, Art Fund want to hear from applicants who, through art, collections and programmes, bring communities together and connect audiences with the ideas, places and stories that matter to them. Find out more and apply on the Art Fund website. |
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Art Fund Acquisition Grants
Art Fund supports the purchase of works of art and other objects of artistic interest dating from antiquity to the present day. They can also support the commission and acquisition of important new work, and welcome proposals for exceptional projects with significant public impact. Applications for commissioned work are also considered as a part of the acquisitions programme.
Grants can range from a few hundred pounds, to hundreds of thousands. Grant requests of £20,000 or less have no strict deadline. Grant requests of above £20,000 are decided at each of the five trustees' meetings in December, February, May, July and October. |
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Conservation of Cultural Heritage
The Pilgrim Trust grants support the conservation of culturally and historically significant collections and objects. That includes works of art, books, significant ephemera, artefacts, and archives.
Grant applicants should only apply to the Pilgrim Trust if they are not eligible for Association of Independent Museums and National Manuscripts Conservation Trust’s grant schemes.
Applications for £5,000 or less should receive a response within four weeks.
Trustees make final decisions for applications over £5,000 at their quarterly meetings. The next cut off date for applications is Friday 8 January 2027. |
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The best ways to get in touch are via the form on our website or by emailing museum.development@bristol.gov.ukIf you think a colleague or friend would like to keep up to date with Museum Development South West, please forward this email or encourage them to join our newsletter by clicking below: |
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Image credits:
- Museum Development South West (MDSW)/ Amanda Harman
- MDSW/ Amanda Harman
- Canva
- Shaftesbury Abbey Museum & Gardens
- Museums+ Heritage Awards
Museum Development South West content:
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