A charity that supports a County Durham museum has admitted that it is at a 'crossroads' moment when it comes to its future after it appointed consultants to try and find a way forward for the group.
The Friends of The Bowes Museum say that they are trying to move itself into the future, despite seeing a decrease in membership, alongside a fall in income.
The charitable trust, which is independent of the museum it supports, has noted that it is "determined to be proactive in seeking ways forward" and has now appointed consultants HBRL to advise on options.
Members of the Friends of Bowes Museum, at its annual general meeting, held at the end of June at the museum in Barnard Castle, heard how a combination of factors had created a ‘crossroads moment’ in the 75-year history of the group.
Chairman of the Friends, Colin Hardy, said that clear downward trends were evident in areas including membership and income.
He added: “In common with many other Friends and voluntary groups across the country, we are seeing a reduction in membership and income and difficulty in recruiting volunteers willing to take on roles.
"These seem to be driven by an increasing age profile, post-pandemic behavioural changes, economic climate, cost of living crisis, people retiring later and an increased shift of retirees fulfilling care responsibilities.”
The Friends group was set up in 1950 at a time when the museum was in crisis and under threat of closure.
Over the years Friends’ donations to the museum’s collections have totalled more than a million pounds in addition to helping pay for refurbishment of spaces and conservation projects, including the Silver Swan automaton.
Friends also provide volunteers at many museum events and projects.
Mr Hardy added: “The consultants will carry out an assessment of how the Friends operates and are due to report back to the committee in the autumn.
"Any decisions on our future will be taken concerning members.
"We want to develop the Friends of the Bowes Museum from the current traditional ‘friends’ model, into an organisation better able to meet the challenges of the times and the aspirations of The Bowes Museum Trust.”
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