Union action secures 3.5% pay rise for London Museum staff - Museums Association Industrial action ends as workers back pay deal

News | Union action secures 3.5% pay rise for London Museum staff

Industrial action ends as workers back pay deal

Overseas visitors should not be charged unless Universal ID is in place, says Hodge - Museums Association Labour peer says financial returns would be less than £10m and she only made recommendation to 'add a little bit more to the measly pot of money' for culture

News | Overseas visitors should not be charged unless Universal ID is in place, says Hodge

Labour peer says financial returns would be less than £10m as she clarifies position on free entry

‘How do we build a relationship with the skeptical generation?’: V&A East opens its doors - Museums Association Long-awaited museum unveiled in east London’s Olympic park

News | ‘How do we build a relationship with the skeptical generation?’: V&A East opens its doors

Long-awaited museum unveiled in east London’s Olympic park

‘No time for modern art’: Mr Beecroft and his bequest - Museums Association The story of Walter Beecroft, his work to establish an art gallery in Southend-on-Sea and his enduring passion for the old masters

‘No time for modern art’: Mr Beecroft and his bequest 📜

Ever wondered about the eponymous benefactor of the MA’s Beecroft Bequest?

Former bequest trustee Emma Shepley introduces us to Walter Beecroft, his work to establish an art gallery in Southend and his enduring passion for the old masters.

Career Conversations - Museums Association Explore your career journey in a discussion session with our workforce development officer

Book your Career Conversation for May/June 2026 💬

Career Conversations are one-hour online discussions with Tamsin C Russell, our workforce development lead, where you can explore your career journey so far and share ideas for next steps.

Get in touch with us to book – exclusively for MA members 👇

Met Office responds to visitor attraction concerns about weather app - Museums Association Industry figures have warned that ‘misleading’ rain icons could be costing venues up to £137,000 a day

News | Met Office - weather and climate responds to visitor attraction concerns about weather app 🌦️

Industry figures have warned that ‘misleading’ rain icons could be costing venues up to £137,000 a day

Preserving the heritage of the Russia-Ukraine war - Museums Association Museums’ efforts to collect artefacts and document testimonies about the Russian invasion are being hampered by a lack of funding to repair damaged facilities

Analysis | Preserving the heritage of the Russia-Ukraine war

Museums’ efforts to collect artefacts and document testimonies about the Russian invasion are being hampered by a lack of funding to repair damaged facilities, writes Rob Sharp.

Q&A | ‘In true NML style, we chose to tear up the rule book and do something different’ - Museums Association Joe Brook tells us how England’s only national museum group outside of London is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year

Q&A | ‘In true NML style, we chose to tear up the rule book and do something different’

Joe Brook tells us how England’s only national museum group outside of London is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

Weston Loan Programme with Art Fund marks first decade - Museums Association Fifteen exhibitions of major loans are taking place this year at host institutions across UK

News | Weston Loan Programme with Art Fund marks first decade

Fifteen exhibitions of major loans are taking place this year at host institutions across UK

Garfield Weston Foundation

Wiener Holocaust Library wins planning approval for major extension - Museums Association London institution granted permission to expand its exhibition and learning spaces

News | The Wiener Holocaust Library wins planning approval for major extension

London institution granted permission to expand its exhibition and learning spaces

Manchester Museum gets £200,000 for Vivarium redevelopment - Museums Association Institution is one of 24 grant recipients in latest round of the DCMS/Wolfson funding

News | Manchester Museum gets £200,000 for Vivarium redevelopment

Institution is one of 24 grant recipients in latest round of the DCMS/Wolfson funding

Museums in England awarded £25.5m in latest round of Mend grants - Museums Association Recipients include Black Country Living Museum and Newstead Abbey

News | Museums in England awarded £25.5m in latest round of Mend grants

Recipients include Black Country Living Museum and Newstead Abbey

Museums Change Lives Awards 2026 - Museums Association Enter this year’s awards recognising and celebrating outstanding work by UK museums delivering social impact

We truly can’t wait to hear all about what you’ve been up to over the last year.

Find out more on our website and make your nominations by 29 June 👇

There are three institutional awards and one individual award up for grabs, each with a cash prize of £500 (and a particularly fetching trophy):

• Best Museums Change Lives Project
• Best Small Museum Project
• New for 2026 | Inclusive Spaces Award
• Radical Changemaker Award

We’re delighted to open our awards for 2026. If you’re not familiar, they’re our annual celebration of the very best of museum work across the UK – the kind of impactful, people-centred projects that make you proud to work in our wonderful sector.

A parent and child look at an animal skeleton in a display case at Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery. Logo reads: Museums Change Lives Awards 2026. Text reads: Museums Change Lives Awards 2026. Nominations now open

The Museums Change Lives Awards 2026 are officially open for nominations 🏆

In an increasingly polarised world, which museums are cutting through the noise to deliver social impact and show up for their communities?

Scroll 👇

Opportunity | Become an AMA mentor - Museums Association We are now recruiting mentors to support museum professionals in realising their potential

Become an AMA mentor and support fellow museum professionals on their development journey 📈

We’re recruiting mentors for our AMA. In this volunteer role, you’ll have the opportunity to help sector colleagues realise their potential as they progress through the programme.

Apply by 29 April 👇

Case study | Programming around a Masterpiece tour - Museums Association When a Monet toured to South Shields Museum, the team programmed events rooted in participation, sensory access and wellbeing

Case study | Programming around a Masterpiece tour 🗓️

When a Monet toured to South Shields Museum (North East Museums), the team programmed events rooted in participation, sensory access and wellbeing

Collections Trust takes on Find an Object service - Museums Association Museums Association version remains live until 18 May

News | Collections Trust takes on Find an Object service

Museums Association version remains live until 18 May

Anglo-Saxon gold and garnet jewellery at Lincoln Museum - Museums Association A case study on the Beecroft Bequest’s support of the acquisition of a remarkable find by local metal detectorists

Beecroft Bequest case study | Anglo-Saxon gold and garnet jewellery at Lincoln Museum 📿

In 2025 the MA’s Beecroft Bequest supported Lincoln Museum’s acquisition of a remarkable group of gold and garnet jewellery, the work of Anglo-Saxon goldsmiths in 7th century England.

Read more 👇

Architects announced for National Gallery’s new modern art wing - Museums Association Kengo Kuma and Associates with BDP and MICA appointed following an international competition

News | Architects announced for National Gallery’s new modern art wing

Kengo Kuma and Associates with BDP and MICA appointed following an international competition

A portrait changed our perspective - Museums Association Hannah Hooks on how Portrait of Mai by Joshua Reynolds speaks to multiple stories of colonial expansion

Opinion | A portrait changed our perspective 🖼️

Hannah Hooks on how Portrait of Mai by Joshua Reynolds speaks to multiple stories of colonial expansion.

Relief as government closes loophole that would allow visitors to ‘abuse’ membership schemes - Museums Association Sector welcomes news that charitable memberships excluded from subscription crackdown

News | Relief as government closes loophole that would allow visitors to ‘abuse’ membership schemes

Sector welcomes news that charitable memberships excluded from subscription crackdown

Do the locomotion | Preston Park Museum, Stockton-on-Tees - Museums Association Creative installations and interactives engage visitors in the story of rail at this new exhibition space

Review | Do the locomotion: Preston Park Museum, Stockton-on-Tees 🚂

Creative installations and interactives engage visitors in the story of rail at this new exhibition space

Inclusive FMA places - Museums Association We're offering five free places to kick-start your Fellowship journey

Start your Fellowship journey for free 💸

The Fellowship of the Museums Association (FMA) recognises significant contribution to museums. As part of our commitment to diversifying the sector, we’re pleased to announce four fully-funded inclusive places for the programme.

Apply for yours by 10 May 👇

Bronze Age gold torc at Milton Keynes Museum - Museums Association A case study exploring the acquisition of a rare twisted gold torc, supported by the Beecroft Bequest

Beecroft Bequest case study | Milton Keynes Museum (MKM)

MKM is dedicated to the history of Milton Keynes, and is the repository for all archaeology excavated in the borough. In 2025 the MA's Beecroft Bequest supported the acquisition of two fragments of a middle Bronze Age gold twisted torc 👇

British Museum’s controversial forecourt plans given green light - Museums Association Camden Council grants planning permission for new welcome pavilions and informal landscaping

News | British Museum’s controversial forecourt plans given green light

Camden Council grants planning permission for new welcome pavilions and informal landscaping

Sector pays tribute to Neil Cossons - Museums Association Cossons, who died at the end of March, had a long and influential career in museums

News | Sector pays tribute to Neil Cossons

Cossons, who died at the end of March, had a long and influential career in museums

Royal Marines Experience launches fundraising push ahead of summer opening - Museums Association Immersive museum set to open in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard

News | Royal Marines Experience launches fundraising push ahead of summer opening

Immersive museum set to open in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard

April Fools' Day!