Thinking about bringing the whole team to Birmingham for Conference 2026? 👥 Institutional members of the MA, grab a discount when you book multiple in-person tickets: 20% off for 10 or more delegates ✅ 30% off for 15 or more delegates ☑️ Interested? Just email [email protected].

News | Jewish Museum London to open first exhibition space since 2023 closure ‘New chapter’ for museum as it works towards a permanent home

News | Brighton & Hove Museums rejects ‘bankruptcy’ claim amid strike action Several museums close this week in deepening dispute over pay and conditions

Don't forget about the July deadline for the next round of the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation Communities and Collections Fund 🗓️ If you've got a project (or partnership) that furthers your collections and inclusion goals, we want to hear about it – submit your expression of interest by 22 July 2026 👇

Two weeks until we launch the updated Empowering Collections report in Edinburgh ⏰ The packed programme of panels, demonstrations and practical talks will introduce our work in this area and support you to put the report into practice in your museum. Book now from £84: https://ow.ly/PSFf50Z52XU

News | Rare treasure finds added to collections after fundraising success Potteries Museum & Art Gallery and South West Heritage Trust announce acquisitions

News | BM director defends postponement of Jewish Culture Month event Cullinan says cultural institutions increasingly find themselves ‘caught between opposing political pressures’

News | All change at Arts Council England: Arm’s-length body announces new chair and funding framework Let’s Create strategy scrapped as Dawn Airey succeeds Nicholas Serota

Visitor Voices: Understanding Your Audiences 🎤 At this essential one-day conference, we'll bring together audience insight and experts in visitor studies to break down exactly what the ever-changing visitor behaviour landscape means for your museum. Book from £37: https://ow.ly/Gx4A50Z4S9u

Free event tomorrow | Members Together Online: Solidarity in Action 🤝 How can museums support our diverse communities in the UK and provide a collaborative space for building coalitions of mutual support? Join us for a 90-minute online discussion with sector leaders – free for all MA members 👇

Four (4️⃣) weeks left to enter the Museums Change Lives Awards 2026 🏆 We know that museums across the UK are delivering outstanding social impact work, making a real difference to their communities and showing up when it matters most. Help us celebrate you – tell us about your projects by 29 June 👇

News | National Galleries of Scotland to focus on young people in new strategic plan Group aiming for 9% increase in visitors aged under 26 by 2030

News | New Natural History Museum, London scheme to enhance biodiversity in museum gardens Museums for Nature will pilot with eight museums before rolling out to wider sector

News | Arts Council England issues guidance for regional museums funding The £13.6m Museum Transformation Programme is designed to improve financial resilience

Thanks @museumsassociation.org! Here’s a booking link. We also have funding available for collecting - come to the breakfast session on 26 June to find out more, or email for info if you can’t make the conference.

A quick note from our friends at the Ceramics Research Centre and the Future Ecologies of Clay project: travel bursaries and free entry are available for any museum professionals who'd like to attend their forthcoming conference on 24-26 June. For more details, email [email protected].

News | The Scottish Crannog Centre unveils new building Opening follows 2021 fire that devastated the Perthshire site

News | National Trust opens three textile exhibitions 🪡 Journeys – Global Textiles from the Karun Thakar Collection is being held at Osterley Park, Blickling Estate and Dyrham Park

Analysis | Is industrial heritage heading down the wrong track? 🚂 If museums can’t find a way to arrest falling visitor numbers, some important sites could be lost for ever. By Rob Sharp

News | Three Ironbridge Gorge sites reopen after National Trust takeover A phased opening of all other attractions is planned over the coming months

News | VAT cut promises cheaper museum tickets for families - tax rate reduced to 5% for certain attractions over summer holidays

Join us for the launch of our updated Empowering Collections report ✅ In 2019 we published Empowering Collections, which called for the sector to work together to ensure that museum collections are empowering, relevant and dynamic. Much has happened since the publication of this report.

News | National museums in England report 10% decrease in young visitors Public investment is needed to remove access barriers, says MA director

News | Màiri McAllan appointed Scotland’s new culture secretary Culture brief merged with education in slimmed-down cabinet

News | Sainsbury Centre receives £91.2m donation Money will be used to revitalise the Norman Foster-designed building at the University of East Anglia, Norwich

Analysis | Them and us: The growing divide between nationals and regionals 🔀 Inequalities in the sector are fuelling debate about philanthropy and free entry. @geraldinekadams.bsky.social reports

News | Five Scottish collections awarded national significance status by Museums Galleries Scotland Linoleum, photography and Iron Age collections among those newly listed under Recognition Scheme

News | Lack of staff is biggest challenge facing museum directors this year Leadership survey finds stretched resources are leading to long-term decline in core collections activity

World at war | Museums Journal, 1930-1960 📰 As Museums Journal marks 125 years of reporting, @geraldinekadams.bsky.social looks at how world war two and new thinking about cultural value shaped the sector from 1930 to 1960.

Don't forget to book your ticket to join us at our accessibility event tomorrow 🎟️ From workforce and communities to buildings and collections, our packed All Inclusive programme will explore what an anti-ableist museum sector might look like. Book your ticket from £37: https://ow.ly/tL8E50Z1Hnt

News | First look at the British Museum’s Bayeux Tapestry exhibition Institution ‘confident’ about transporting artefact to London after two successful dry runs

MA Conference 2026 after dark: revealing our party venues 🌃 What happens at conference when the sun goes down? Well, we'll gather at some of Birmingham's top cultural sites to mingle, unwind and explore ✨

Amazing throwback!

Feature | Great again? The rise of nostalgic nationalism 📈 We're living through a time of extremism, division and collective forgetting. But Rachael Lennon believes museums have the power to seed hope and cohesion #InternationalMuseumDay #IMD2026 ICOM UK

The theme of this year's #InternationalMuseumDay is Museums Uniting a Divided World. We're focusing on how museums can act as bridges across cultural, social and geopolitical divides, fostering dialogue, understanding, inclusion and peace 🕊️ @icomuk.bsky.social #IMD2026

It’s crucial that we hear from as many services as possible, particularly if you’ve filled in the survey before, so we can conduct trends analysis and inform our evidence based decision making (2/4)

The UK annual Archive Sector Survey is now open! Take part by 29 May 2026 and help us gather evidence that will support archives to advocate for their social and economic value: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/archives-sec... (1/4)

News | Regimental museum returns items to Ethiopia Collections research work at Kings Own Royal Regiment Museum was supported by the Museums Association’s Esmée Fairbairn Communities and Collections Fund

News | Fashion Museum Bath gets green light for redevelopment Museum will relocate to former post office as part of wider regeneration project

News | Irish culture minister says restitution of heritage from UK ‘needs to be examined’ Dáil members call for return of artefacts taken from Ireland by former colonial powers

News | Community engagement initiatives recognised at sector awards Birmingham Museums Citizens’ Jury and Horniman’s All Eyes on Her among the winners of the Museums + Heritage Awards

News | Heledd Fychan Plaid Cymru named new Welsh culture minister Former MA board member promises increased investment as she joins Plaid Cymru’s first cabinet

News | Wellcome Collection to return 2,000 manuscripts in landmark agreement Museum says Jain texts were acquired ‘against the best interests of their original owners’

How are you feeling? 💭 Wellbeing can be defined as a state of being comfortable, healthy or happy. Check out our Wellbeing Hub this #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek for resources and guidance on everything from burnout to eco-anxiety. Plus: let us know if there are resources you'd like to see in future.

News | Beatles museum to open on site of band’s legendary rooftop concert Venue will be the first museum in London dedicated to the Fab Four

News | Site of first smallpox vaccinations to reopen after restoration work Temple of Vaccinia at Dr Jenner's House museum was added to the Heritage at Risk Register last year

News | Female artists draw in the crowds Visitor targets exceeded for shows in Plymouth, Margate and Cardiff

Guide | Cataloguing distressing collections 🗃️ Hannah Nagle shares her experiences developing a mental health first aid kit #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek #MHAW #MHAW2026

News | Commercial thinking is key for success, according to new report Research highlights factors driving financial resilience in culture sector

News | Natural History Museum repatriates ancestral remains to Japan Ceremony held in London this week to mark formal transfer of seven Ainu individuals