Cost-of-living crisis is hitting museums hard, report shows

The cost-of-living crisis is having a huge impact on visitor numbers, staffing, volunteers and finances, according to an annual survey of museums released this month.

Data for the survey is gathered through England’s nine regional development organisations, with the report produced by South West Museum Development.

The survey, which is in its seventh year, covers non-national museums within the Accreditation scheme who provide data on their workforce, finances, audiences and other areas. This year, more than 700 museums took part, which represents 57% of England’s independent, local authority and university-governed organisations. 

The Annual Museum Survey 2023 shows that the cost-of-living crisis is affecting museums in many different ways, and the expectation is that things will get worse before they get better.

Victoria Harding, programme manager at South West Museum Development, said: "Analysing the data across the past four years has provided valuable insights, not just into the pandemic recovery and the agility of the sector to rebuild, but also the new impacts generated by the cost-of-living crisis. 

"A range of factors, such as free entry and geography, have influenced the degree to which museum visitors have returned to pre-pandemic levels.  However, across the sector, irrespective of how successfully museums have generated increased income through a variety of new, or enhanced, ways this progress is outstripped by the increase in expenditure reported by 64% of museums."

Museums reported higher expenditure across many areas, but particularly on energy bills, materials, staff costs and travel expenses. Those still on fixed-energy deals expect to see significant increases when their contracts end.

The report found that museums have been trying to balance a need to increase ticket prices to generate more income with a desire to keep admission charges low to encourage attendance, particularly from diverse audiences. Visitor spend is down overall, according to the survey, and some museums have seen a drop in donations.

The cost-of-living crisis is also having an impact on staff, with some struggling with their finances while others have left for higher-paid jobs or moved to new roles closer to home.

The survey says that some museums have been finding it harder to recruit seasonal staff and staff to lower-paid roles, particularly in retail, catering and cleaning. And some volunteers are returning to paid jobs or are struggling to afford to travel to the museum.

But overall, museum volunteers are making a return to pre-pandemic levels, with the number of people volunteering increasing by 11%, only 5% fewer than pre-pandemic levels.

In terms of the impact of the cost of living on visitors, the report says that schools are struggling to fund museum visits, particularly the transport costs.

Overall, visitor demographics and behaviour are changing and are increasingly difficult to predict, the report says.

The Annual Museum Survey also showed that while opening hours are close to pre-pandemic levels, visitor numbers are still down. In 2022/23, the number of hours opened was 6% less than 2019/20. Visitor numbers in 2022/23 were higher than the previous year, but still down 18% on pre-pandemic levels.

The survey also said that there are signs that the financial landscape is beginning to shift for museums. After a small increase in reported income during 2020/21 and 2021/22, income dropped by 3% in 2022/23 at the same time as expenditure increased by 10%.

The Annual Museums Survey is funded by Arts Council England.