Uncertainty for Nottingham Museums as council outlines budget cuts

Nottingham’s museum service is facing uncertainty as it undergoes a review of its delivery model.

Nottingham City Council has announced a sweeping package of budget cuts after it was forced to issue of a Section 114 notice earlier this month.

The museum service review got underway earlier this year and was not initiated by the Section 114 notice. However the council's budget proposals for the museum service following the review remain "to be confirmed".

The local authority has warned that it is facing a £23m hole in its in-year spending, as well as a £53m gap in its budget for the next financial year. The Section 114 notice means that no new expenditure is permitted, with the exception of funding for statutory services.

In its budget proposals for 2024/25, published this week, the council confirmed that the museum service is “currently undergoing a Delivery Model Assessment (DMA) process to identify an alternative delivery model for these primarily discretionary services that minimises reliance upon contribution from the council”.

In a further proposal, which is not up for public consultation, the council outlined plans for a “reduction in Museums Conservation Service resource”, which will mean the deletion of any conservation resource “above grant match funding requirements”.  

The council said: "There is no reduction planned in relation to museum conservation work. The proposal for a reduction of £9,000 relates to conservation work undertaken  by our Biological Records Service and will not affect the work of that team, nor will it have wider impact for the museum collections."

Nottingham Museums has direct responsibility for a number of historic sites across the city, including Newstead Abbey and estate, Wollaton Hall, which includes a Tudor mansion and a Natural History Museum, Nottingham Industrial Museum, the Museum of Nottingham Life and Greens Windmill.

Last year, the service assumed responsibility for the management of Nottingham Castle after the collapse of the charitable trust that ran the site on the council's behalf. The council also supports the Museum of the Mercian Regiment, which is located within the castle site.

In addition to the museum service restructure, Nottingham City Council is proposing to cut all funding for culture, with the budget proposals outlining a plan to “cease contributions to the cultural sector” in order to make a saving of £198,000.

The council currently supports cultural facilities including Nottingham Contemporary and the New Art Exchange.

The proposals will go to the council’s executive board on 19 December, which will likely agree for them to be put forward for further discussion. For proposals that require consultation, an official four-week public consultation will begin straight away and end in mid-January. A final decision was made at full council early next year.

In a recent statement, the council said it was unable to deliver a balanced budget “due to issues affecting councils across the country, including an increased demand for children’s and adults’ social care, rising homelessness presentations and the impact of inflation”.

The statement added: "The council is not 'bankrupt' or insolvent, and has sufficient financial resources to meet all of its current obligations, to continue to pay staff, suppliers and grant recipients in this year."

The UK Government is due to make a decision in early January on whether to send in commissioners to take over management of the council’s budget.

Nottingham is the latest in a swathe of local authorities to issue Section 114 notices, following Birmingham City, Thurrock and Woking earlier this year.

Civic museums are facing growing uncertainty as council leaders warn of an unprecedented crisis in local authority funding. The County Councils Network has reported that seven in 10 local authorities in England are unsure if they will be able to balance their budgets in the next financial year.

Sharon Heal, director of the Museums Association, said government commissioners brought in to oversee struggling councils must recognise that museums and heritage are cultural rather than financial assets.

She said: “It’s been an extremely tough year for civic museums. The after effect of the pandemic and the ongoing impact of the cost of living crisis has put pressure on struggling local authorities. Many of them want to support museums and culture but are struggling to balance their books and to pay for statutory services.

"We are calling on commissioners to recognise museum buildings and collections as cultural, not financial, assets that are not for sale.

"We need our museums now more than ever, which is why we recently launched our Museum Manifesto calling on governments to commit to everyone should have the right to engage with and participate in museums and to have access to a high-quality museum service near to where they live."

Update
18.12.2023

Updated to clarify that the review of the museum service got underway earlier this year and was not initiated by the Section 114 declaration.

Nottingham City Council has also clarified that the reduction in conservation resource applies to work undertaken by the Biological Records Service and will not affect the wider work of the conservation team.