Kent County Council Urged to Keep its Museums and Art Galleries
April 6, 2004 9:21 AM
Cllr Peter Morgan wants Kent County Council to retain its Museums and Art Galleries
"Kent County Council should NOT give up its responsibilities for its Museums in Folkestone, Ramsgate, Sevenoaks and Gravesend", said Peter Morgan, County Councillor for Swale Central, to a meeting of Kent County Council's Cabinet on 5th April 2004.
Cabinet received a Report of an investigation into the state of the KCC Museums and Art Galleries, Peter Morgan criticised the Terms of Reference which suggested that KCC should be either a strategic OR a delivery body. "KCC should be BOTH a supportive and an active body in the Museums world in Kent", said Peter, who then went on to make the following points:
1 "The best people to deliver an informed strategy are those who are actively involved in meeting the day-to-day challenges of delivering a Museum service.
2. The Borough/District Councils are unlikely to accept this responsibility because they are short of funds and I also anticipate severe difficulty in finding voluntary bodies to take on the finance and organisation of Museums in historic buildings.
3. In both European countries and in other UK counties, the local authorities and regional authorities accept this duty on behalf of their communities, firstly out of respect for the past and, secondly, to present and interpret the lessons learned for future generations.
4. Here in Kent, all the voluntary Museums rely heavily on KCC Museums Officers for advice, support and training. If we retain the four Museums and make them into 'beacons of excellence' it will help to raise the standards in the many small local history and specialist Museums."
"A good Local History Museum gives a community a sense of identity, an appreciation of its inheritance, a source of education and inspiration to the old and young alike", concluded Peter Morgan.
Cabinet endorsed the report that recommends that "Kent should work to divest itself of the ownership of its Museums by initiating talks with District Councils and other interested Groups (Recommendation 18, Report of Education & Libraries Select Committee - Arts & Museums, February 2004)."