Agenda item

To consider the King’s Lynn Museum Report.

The Committee received the report from the Head of Operations and Learning which provided information on King’s Lynn Museum activities for the period December 2017 to February 2018.

Reference was made to the very positive Arts Council England assessment of the current Shoes exhibition at Lynn Museum.  The Head of Operations and Learning undertook to circulate a copy of the report to the Committee

The Curator provided an update on the South Gates project and explained that a number of clay pipes had been found during an excavation.

The visitor numbers were tabled for the period 2017/2018 to date.  The Committee was informed that for the same period last year, visitor numbers had increased by 1,000.

The Head of Operations and Learning, Curator and Operations Manager responded to questions relating to:

·         The Arts Council England assessment of the current Shoes exhibition at Lynn Museum.

·         Collections used from stores to form temporary exhibitions in the Lynn Museum.

·         Loan of collections/items from other national and regional museums.

·         Consideration of time during the year to hold future national schemes to offer enhanced access to those museums and other heritage sites which had received funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund as a thank you to lottery players.

·         Importance of marketing using social media.

·         Programmes for schools.

·         Map of King’s Lynn by Wenceslaus Hollar.

·         Lighting requirements in display cases and monitoring thereof.

·         Protocol for handling museum objects.

·         South Gates project including lighting, display, activities. volunteers.

·         Community archaeological investigation into the civil war defences between South Gates and the river.

·         Joint offer with Stories of Lynn and Lynn Museum for Sunday opening.

·         Lynn Museum as venue for ‘pop up’ recitals during the July Festival period.

·         Partnership working with Norfolk County Council to provide free admission cards to the Lynn Museum for care leavers.

·         Teaching museum traineeship providing an opportunity for future employment.

·         School visitor numbers.

·         Visitor numbers and potential range of factors which could have an influence on the number of visitors visiting museums.

·         Voucher scheme to encourage return visits.

Friends of the Museum

Susan Thompson provided an update, a summary of which is set out below:

·         Friends offer a varied programme for members

·         Friends of the Museum had recently purchased a badge making machine and two Anglo Saxon

·         400 hours – volunteering from the Friends of the Museum.

·         At the Annual Meeting, Kim Leonard had been appointed Treasurer.

·         Unveiling of Henry Baines painting on 18 December 2017 was well attended.

·         Tour of Hardwick Cemetery scheduled for 23 April 2018 and Members of the Committee were invited to attend and should contact S Thompson.

·         In the main, the Young Friends of the Museum had been superseded by the widely-available Children's University passport scheme, although one new Young Friend had recently joined.

·         Friends of the Museum would be attending the Launch of the West Norfolk Lottery on 20 March 2018.

AGREED:  1) That the report be noted.

2) Rachel Williams, Learning and Engagement Officer for Stories of Lynn be invited to give a presentation at the next meeting of the Committee.