Birmingham Museums to receive nearly £1 million from Museum Renewal Fund

Birmingham Museums is to receive £995,000 from a government fund to support museums most at risk from acute financial pressures caused by rising operating costs and loss of funding from local authorities.

The £20 million Museum Renewal Fund was announced by Lisa Nandy, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, in February 2025.

It is an urgent intervention targeted at museums owned or directly maintained by local authority funding or with a governance link to a local authority, to safeguard the vital community engagement and impact which public access to museums enables.

The money awarded to Birmingham Museums will fund various income generating and audience engagement initiatives including seven-day opening at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, marketing, support for fundraising activity and further work with its citizens’ jury which presented a set of recommendations to help inform Birmingham Museums’ transformation strategy earlier this year.

The funding period is for the financial year 2025-26, with all funds to be committed/spent by 31 January 2026.

Sara Waid and Zak Mensah, co-chief executives of Birmingham Museums Trust, said: “We are very grateful for this much needed financial assistance from the Museum Renewal Fund, which will enable us to reduce the trust’s financial shortfall and fund activities to generate additional income.

“But while the funding will make a real difference in the short term, it must be spent by the end of January next year, which underlines how temporary this support is.

“We need this to be just the start: the civic museum sector requires a sustained, long-term financial strategy so that we can plan ahead confidently, care for our collections properly, serve our communities fully and ensure that these institutions of such vital cultural importance are resilient into the future.”

Councillor Saima Suleman, cabinet member for Digital, Culture, Heritage and Tourism at Birmingham City Council, said: “All credit to Birmingham Museums Trust management and trustees in securing significant support from the Museum Renewal Fund.

“Whilst this funding is non-recurring, it will resolve the Trust’s immediate financial pressure and, importantly, fund investment in activities to generate additional income. The city council is doing all it can within its means to support the Trust’s activity going forward.

“Birmingham Museums remains one of the city’s most treasured cultural institutions with a diverse and innovative array of collections, activities and exhibitions across our city for both residents and visitors to enjoy.”

Photo credit: Birmingham Museums Citizens’ Jury © Birmingham Museums Trust