Arts, Museums & Heritage Forum Newsletter

10 October 2016

Dear Forum Member,

On Monday 3 October we held a well-attended and positive Forum meeting in the Lucas Room of Town Hall to give an update on progress on the North Museum/Town Hall Project. Many thanks to those of you who attended.

Following John Robinson’s recent retirement, the Contracts & Projects Manager Steve Crowley gave an update on the situation regarding the land known as 14 and 15 Brand Street (covering the new museum entrance, reception area, lift and staircase). He said that he would not be able to answer any questions on discussions between NHDC and Ltd, but reported that there has been at least one top level meeting. Meanwhile museum staff are not able to access their office, the Learning Centre or the Local Studies Centre, as although these are owned by NHDC, the staircase gives the only access. Following Steve’s report, there were a number of questions, starting with whether NHDC has looked into opening the museum without 14 and 15 Brand Street. The answer is that the Council has undertaken a preliminary investigation, and early indications suggest it is possible to open without this land. Also, a platform lift could be installed on the Town Hall landing if need be. Other questions were about how much on- site storage there is – currently we have good quality art and costume stores, plus archive stores in the Local Studies Centre. The storage area below the basement has been surveyed with a view to eliminating the damp, and there is already a budget for this. We were asked about the value of the collections, and Ros Allwood explained that many museum objects and archives were priceless to North Herts., but often had a low monetary value. The highest valued items, some of the paintings, have all been purchased with public grant-aid, and could not be sold by NHDC without paying back the grant. There were questions about when the Local Studies Centre might open, and when the Archive volunteers might return. We can’t answer this, because we currently do not have access to our archive, or to the upper Learning Centre, where a number of activities took place this summer. Unfortunately there is nowhere else suitable in the building, which is frustrating for staff and volunteers alike.

Ros Allwood then gave a PowerPoint presentation outlining some of the many activities that museum team have been doing while the museum is still closed, from providing craft activities

for people with dementia to training in awareness of asbestos in historic objects, by way of osteo-archaeology study days, evening talks to groups, and licensing images for reproduction. In partnership with the British Schools Museum and Stevenage Museum, North Herts. Museum has been successful in winning two successive Arts Council ‘Resilience’ grants, both funding a member of staff to run volunteer development programmes. NHDC museum staff are still getting the new museum ready, arranging the glazing of paintings so that the public can have a close look at them without harm, and digitising all items which will be on display. Hundreds of museum objects may already be seen on our collections management system, eHive, and you will find a direct link at the end of this document. All the objects for the museum are now on site; all barring a few very large items were packed and moved by museum staff from the old Hitchin and Letchworth Museums. Ros showed pictures of the counter from the Chemist’s Shop being moved up to the first floor via a huge scaffold in Hitchin Town Hall, as it was too long to go up and around the staircase. The first exhibition, illustrations by author and artist Nick Sharratt (who illustrates all the Jacqueline Wilson books) will be held in the Lucas Room in December.

The second part of the presentation was about the NHDC Arts, Museums & Heritage Strategy, which was written in 2007 after wide consultation, including with Forum members. There was a very different economic climate then, and some of the Strategy’s ambitions reflect this. It needs updating to reflect the current situation. Many of the original objectives have been fulfilled, and NHDC does not have the capacity locally to achieve some of the others. Ros explained that our strategy needed to align with national strategies issued by the Arts Council, the Heritage Lottery Fund, and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, as well as the Council’s own objectives. Links to the Strategy and Action Plan are provided, and all comments will be gratefully received. eHive link: https://ehive.com/collections/4308/nherts

Strategy Link: http://www.north-herts.gov.uk/sites/northherts- cms/files/arts_museums_heritage_strategy_2007.pdf

Strategy Action Plan: http://www.north-herts.gov.uk/sites/northherts- cms/files/museums_action_plan_0707-2.pdf

If you have any questions regarding this newsletter, please contact Ros Allwood, Cultural Services Manager on 01462 4374236 or [email protected]