{"id":38976,"date":"2024-02-06T16:09:25","date_gmt":"2024-02-06T16:09:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsblogsnew.ihbc.org.uk\/?p=38976"},"modified":"2024-02-05T18:41:54","modified_gmt":"2024-02-05T18:41:54","slug":"ihbc-features-heritage-from-the-defence-doorstep-four-museums-and-one-arts-centre-at-risk-of-closure-due-to-local-authority-funding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/?p=38976","title":{"rendered":"IHBC features \u2018Heritage from the defence doorstep\u2019: Four museums and one arts centre at risk of closure due to Local Authority funding"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright  wp-image-26938\" src=\"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/pound_pink-201x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"102\" height=\"152\" \/>Hampshire Cultural Trust (HCT) has confirmed that five of the venues it operates in the county \u2013 four museums and one arts centre \u2013 are at risk of closure as a result of local authority funding challenges.<\/h3>\n<h6><em>image for illustration<\/em><\/h6>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><em><span style=\"color: #800080;\">\u2026 we do not want to close any of the venues we operate\u2026<\/span><\/em><\/h2>\n<p>Hampshire Cultural Trust writes:<\/p>\n<p>The five proposed venues could potentially close under a phased plan over the next three years. The venues affected and the anticipated time scales for closure are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ashcroft Arts Centre, Fareham \u2013 autumn 2024<\/li>\n<li>Westbury Manor Museum, Fareham \u2013 January 2025<\/li>\n<li>Eastleigh Museum \u2013 currently temporarily closed to the public; permanent closure January 2025<\/li>\n<li>Andover Museum and the Museum of the Iron Age \u2013 2026<\/li>\n<li>Curtis Museum, Alton \u2013 2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The trust will also cease to operate Bursledon Windmill in March 2024 following the withdrawal of funding by Eastleigh Borough Council in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur position is that we do not want to close any of the venues we operate,\u201d said Paul Sapwell, Chief Executive of Hampshire Cultural Trust. \u201cBut faced with substantially reduced local authority funding, we have had no option but to make some very difficult decisions. We intend to mitigate the full effect of the funding challenge through a wider business plan that includes potentially taking on new, more financially sustainable venues, as well as growing existing areas of our business. However, new opportunities and growth cannot fully offset the reduction in council funding currently proposed and some venue closures will therefore also be necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hampshire County Council is the trust\u2019s largest funder, currently contributing \u00a32.5 million per annum, but under its current budget consultation, which opened to the public today, it is proposed that this funding will be cut by \u00a3600,000 per annum by 2027. In December 2023, the council agreed separately to transfer operation of Winchester\u2019s Great Hall to the trust as part of a new vision for the city\u2019s historic castle area. Under the terms of this transfer, the trust will incur a further \u00a3400,000 grant reduction by 2027 in recognition of the commercial opportunity presented by the transfer.<\/p>\n<p>Hampshire County Council\u2019s consultation does not extend to Westbury Manor Museum, which HCT operates on behalf of Fareham Borough Council. Given the challenging economic climate, the trust approached Fareham Borough Council for financial support for the museum in 2023, however this was declined. The trust now intends to hand back the venue to the council in January 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Sapwell continues: \u201cSubject to Hampshire County Council\u2019s current consultation, we anticipate withdrawing from Ashcroft Arts Centre, Westbury Manor Museum and Eastleigh Museum by early 2025.However, Alton\u2019s Curtis Museum and Andover Museum and the Museum of the Iron Age sit later in the proposed business plan. With a \u00a32.5 million project to refurbish the Allen Gallery already underway in Alton, we remain fully committed to high-quality cultural provision in the town. We also enjoy a very positive working relationship with Test Valley Borough Council and are delighted that they have received Levelling Up Funding in the latest round. With a three-year window ahead of us, we will work with local partners to find solutions that may enable us to keep these venues in Alton and Andover open, however, without additional funding this will of course be challenging.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hampshireculture.org.uk\/news\/four-museums-and-one-arts-centre-risk-closure-due-local-authority-funding\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more&#8230;.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hampshire Cultural Trust (HCT) has confirmed that five of the venues it operates in the county \u2013 four museums and one arts centre \u2013 are at risk of closure as a result of local authority funding challenges. image for illustration<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sector-newsblog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38976"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38976\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38977,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38976\/revisions\/38977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}