Art Fund awards £1.3 m to museums and galleries for collections work

Image: The Museum of Chelmsford, Essex - courtesy City of Chelmsford

Twenty-nine museums and galleries across the UK have been awarded £1.3m by Art Fund in the final round of its Reimagine funding programme, reports the Museums Association:

'MonLife Museums in Wales, Belfast Exposed art gallery in Northern Ireland and the Museum of Chelmsford in Essex are among those to receive grants for collections-focused projects.

'The Horniman Museum and Gardens in London has been awarded £49,992 for Repair: Community Stewardship Model for Care and Treatment of Ancestral Remains, a project that will pilot a community-led stewardship model for ancestral remains, embedding culturally specific care and documentation protocols. The museum hopes this new model will influence practice in this area across the sector.

'Meanwhile, Oxford’s Pitt Rivers Museum will use its £47,500 grant to develop new protocols that “embed ceremony and symbolic welcome into everyday museum practice”.

'An additional £100,000 worth of micro-grants will be distributed through Museum Development England, Northern Ireland Museums Council and Museums Galleries Scotland to smaller organisations, ensuring that museums of all sizes receive the support they need to continue their work. 

'Reimagine was launched in 2020 in response to the challenges imposed by the pandemic on the museum sector. More than 245 museums and galleries have since received funding. 

'This final round of grant-giving focuses on collections, one of the areas of museum practice with the greatest demand for funding.

'Art Fund’s Museum Directors Survey in 2024 found that 56% of museums saw a lack of funding for collections as a major barrier to fundamental work like digitising and reviewing collections, and acquiring new materials. 

'Jenny Waldman, the director of Art Fund, said: “At the core of Art Fund’s purpose is supporting museums to develop, care for and share the collections that enrich people’s lives. From acquisitions and commissions to vital collections work, we’re proud to support organisations of all sizes in every corner of the country. 

"This final round of Reimagine funding continues that commitment – supporting museums to explore their collections, connect with communities and ensure that works of art, objects and their stories are shared and preserved for future generations.”

'Art Fund is continuing to consult with experts from the sector to shape future programmes, including through the next Museum Director Survey in early 2026. It hopes to ensure that its next phase of support continues to meet the evolving needs of museums and their collections.'