Opening Doors: Learning in the Historic Environment

Section F · Organisational and financial issues

F 1 · Funding and fund-raising

A shortage of funds or not?

The shortage of funding for learning opportunities at both historic sites and at schools is a recurring issue. Ironically, there is a great deal of money available, from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the New Opportunities Fund and various Government initiatives, as well as from charitable foundations. The problem is that much of this funding is ‘opportunistic’, related to individual projects and initiatives. While this support is extremely valuable, its short term nature makes it extremely difficult for those involved in this world to set up strategic policies or to organise long-term programmes. The situation is exacerbated by the funding difficulties of those who should be able to create such policies at local level: Local Authorities and LEAs.

In terms of museum education, an important initiative is the £7 million awarded over two years by the DCMS and the DfES to boost children and young people’s learning in museums and galleries, announced in April 2004. This has very positive implications, both in immediate financial terms and for its implications for departmental collaboration.

Funding difficulties at sites

At an individual level, there is a chronic shortage of funding for learning activities at many historic sites. As we have seen, salaries are low, budgets are often minimal, and much of the best work is done as special projects. The generous funding that has become available to museum education (through important and welcome Government initiatives) in recent years has not in the main reached historic sites.

Fund-raising

Fund-raising is difficult and time-consuming for historic sites, especially smaller ones. While sites with more fully developed staff structures do raise money and obtain sponsorship, the task often occupies a great deal of their time and energy. The development over the past decade of the Lottery distributors has made a major difference, but their contribution is limited by their inability to undertake core costs such as permanent salaries: they can only make grants for up to five years. While these grants make a major impact, the projects and posts often terminate when the grant expires.

Our research shows that while institutions can sometimes fund core educational expenses from their own budgets, almost all are dependent on short-term grants for their most interesting activities. This applies both to small places and to large organisations such as the National Trust. The Trust already contributes extensive core funds to learning and interpretation, as well as attracting external funds. In order to achieve its full aims, it needs to raise very considerable additional funding. The National Trust for Scotland would like to introduce free admission for schools but cannot afford to.

Fund-raising can be nightmarishly complex. In Yorkshire the funding organisations assisting historic sites which were mentioned to our researcher included the Education Action Zones, the Single Regeneration Budget, the National Literacy Funding Group, the New Opportunities Fund, the Social Diversity Fund, the Museums and Galleries Programme, the Heritage Lottery Fund, Science Week, Yorkshire Arts, Countryside Education Access (through DEFRA), the Business in Education Partnership, the Urban Regeneration Budget, the Hamlyn Foundation, the Clore Foundation, Excellence Cluster, the National Children’s Fund and the NSPCC.

For schools, fund-raising is also a problem. Individual schools often find it difficult to create links with charities or foundations which might fund education activities. This is due partly to lack of experience, partly perhaps to the view that fund-raising is an inappropriate activity, but most of all to the time pressures on staff. Our colloquia revealed that when member societies of NADFAS write to individual schools offering financial help for transport for special outings, the letters not infrequently remain unanswered.

Commercial obligations

Privately-owned historic sites – which we consider to include parish churches as well as country houses and charitable trusts – may well be forced to concentrate on activities which will easily attract large numbers, for financial reasons. When rural estates are under financial pressure, learning initiatives may have to take second place to commercial imperatives.

Budgets at historic sites

The core funding available for heritage education, provided by the historic sites themselves, is extremely limited. Even sites in the care of nationwide organisations such as English Heritage, Historic Scotland and the National Trusts often operate on minimal budgets. Over and over again, we have found that education services at heritage sites rely on good will, the energy of a very small complement of staff (often less than one person’s time) and a few pounds a year for photocopying. Budgets under £1,000 per annum are common, to cover visiting staff, publicity, materials for schools (though not salaries). At the more heavily-visited sites, costs are met by admission charges.

Knife-edge existence

Some of the most successful sites are hardly able to survive because of their financial problems. Verdant Works in Dundee have in the past been close to closure. Hackney Building Exploratory, a flagship institution, is constantly threatened financially. At Clarke Hall the post of education specialist is only funded for a limited period. The budgets needed to keep such inspiring places afloat and functioning properly are very small. There must be a solution.

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