Derby City Council considers removing nearly all funding from museums by 2018 7 Jan 2016

Derby City Council, which must find savings of £45m, is contemplating removing virtually all of its funding for Derby Museums Trust within two years.  The Trust will receive £1.05m towards running The Silk Mill, Derby Museum and Art Gallery and Pickford’s House this financial year, but is facing a reduction to £170k by April 2018.  Derby Museums Chief Executive Tony Butler said that if the plans went ahead, the museums would close, but he added: “I’m hoping that over the next two years that we can work with the council, other organisations like the Art Council, and Department for Culture, Media and Sport, philanthropists, trusts and foundations, to keep these museums.”  The Trust has been innovative in its approach to supporting the museum service, increasing earned revenue from 2% in 2013 to 15% this year, with a target of 20% next.  However Butler does not think that this trend alone will save the service, saying “fundamentally you can’t have the museums in Derby without some sort of public funding.”  Museums Journal, Derby Telegraph