Missing Henry VIII portrait spotted in county hall
26/07/2024 Art historians believe a missing portrait of Henry VIII is owned by Warwickshire County Council after it was spotted in a photo on social media. |
Council secures Mr Darcy’s iconic ‘wet shirt’
23/05/2024 Calderdale Council has successfully secured Mr Darcy’s iconic ‘wet shirt’ from the BBC adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. |
Museums and libraries receive £33m cash injection
26/03/2024 Nearly 70 museums and libraries across England are to receive £33m in the latest round of the Government's Cultural Investment Fund. |
Two-thirds of councils to cut neighbourhood services
27/02/2024 Community services will have to be ‘drastically scaled back’ or cut altogether without further funding for councils, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned. |
Controversial Colston statue to move to museum
13/02/2024 The controversial Bristol statue of transatlantic slave trader Edward Colston, which was torn down by protestors in 2020, is set to be moved to a museum. |
Culture spend down by £500m
01/02/2024 Analysis has uncovered an almost £500m reduction in councils’ spending on libraries, culture, heritage and tourism since the onset of austerity. |
Dorset awards half a million to local culture
12/01/2024 Cultural services across Dorset are set to benefit from £486,000 over the next three years. |
Historic artefacts transferred to county council
15/12/2023 Ownership of historic artefacts found outside of Lincoln is set to be transferred from the city council to Lincolnshire County Council. |
Museums and the cost-of-culture crisis
11/10/2023 India Divers, policy and campaigns officer, Museums Association looks at the impact on museums of the financial squeeze faced by most local authorities. |
Where’s Wally? Stolen statue spotted and returned to council
29/09/2023 A piece of art stolen in a heist 16 years ago has been returned to Ealing Council. |
Mayor urged to support smaller museums
27/04/2023 Mayor Sadiq Khan should make ‘more permanent, affordable premises’ available for London’s quirkier cultural organisations, London assembly members say. |
Over 70 cultural venues set for £60m investment
20/03/2023 More than 70 libraries, museums and arts centres are to be given a £60m boost, culture secretary Lucy Frazer has announced. |
Derby museums warn of ‘devastating’ cuts
09/01/2023 Museums in Derby have warned that planned cuts by the city council could have a ‘devastating effect’ on their services. |
Local arts funding faces £2.4bn gap
08/12/2022 A multi-year funding settlement is essential for helping local authorities support the arts, council chiefs say as report reveals a £2.4bn culture funding gap. |
Cultural institutions face ‘existential threat’, MPs warn
02/11/2022 Theatres, museums and leisure centres in historically left behind areas are facing an ‘existential threat’ from the cost-of-living crisis, MPs warn. |
Councils encouraged to apply for share of £128m culture fund
10/05/2022 Cultural venues including museums, galleries and public libraries are being encouraged to submit expressions of interest to receive a share of £128m. |
Museums and galleries to receive £48m boost
14/03/2022 Cultural venues across the country are set to receive £48m of funding to help improve access to the arts, the Government has announced. |
Council spending on museums falls by more than a quarter in past decade
27/10/2021 Local authority spending on museums and galleries has fallen by 27% in the past decade, new analysis has found. |
Protecting art in a crisis
27/07/2020 Tiffany Cloynes and Clare Hardy outline how local authorities can play an important part in enabling arts and culture to flourish in their areas. |
Council celebrates ‘landmark’ ruling that will save museums thousands
18/06/2020 Exeter CC has welcomed a landmark ruling over the rateable valuation of a Grade II building in a court decision that could save museums thousands of pounds. |
Art charity announces £2m to support museums and galleries
17/06/2020 Museums and art galleries are to receive a much needed funding boost to help them weather the impact of Covid-19. |
Court finds in favour of museum in ‘landmark’ business rates case
17/01/2020 A long-running battle over how museums are valued for business rates has come to an end with a court ruling that they should be valued based on net income. |
Whitehall announces £250m of culture spending
14/10/2019 The Government has announced £250m of funding for cultural projects, libraries, museums and the creative industries after a decade of cuts. |
Council finds 500-year-old stolen clock
28/08/2019 West Suffolk Council has located an antique clock after it was stolen during a break in nearly six decades ago. |
Combined authority asked to approve £6.6m museum grant
26/07/2019 A national children’s museum is set to get a boost after the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority is asked to approve a grant for up to £6.6m. |
Blackpool museum allocated £4m in lottery funding
24/06/2019 A museum celebrating Blackpool’s role in the development of British culture has been allocated £4m in lottery funding. |
Council spending on cultural services slashed by £400m
28/01/2019 Council spending on cultural resources such as museums, libraries, and the arts has been reduced by almost £400m over the last eight years of austerity, new research has revealed. |
Five areas to share £20m cultural development fund
18/01/2019 The five areas to receive £20m of funding to invest in culture have been unveiled by the Government. |
Council ‘disposed’ of ancient Roman artefact
07/09/2018 Colchester Borough Council disposed of a Roman water feature after it proved ‘too expensive' to maintain. |
Whitehall should ‘ease restrictions’ on sale of museum items, law firm says
27/03/2018 The Government should ease restrictions preventing local authority museums from selling items in their possession, law firm says. |
Action plan published for the future of museums
14/11/2017 Museums should contribute to the priorities of their local area and diversify their audiences, according to a review of the sector. |
Online hub created for councils to share innovative ways to invest in culture
17/08/2017 Financially-squeezed councils can now access a specialised online hub designed to help them share innovative ways to invest in culture. |
£500,000 cuts threaten Birmingham museums
12/01/2017 Proposed council funding cuts could ‘significantly impact’ Birmingham’s position as a leading city for arts and culture, trust warns. |
Arts and culture funding to be shifted away from the capital
05/10/2016 Funding for arts and culture outside of London will be increased by 4% by 2022, Arts Council England has announced. |
New programme will give 600 youths access to the arts, Whitehall claims
10/08/2016 A new programme promoting cultural engagement within disadvantaged communities will provide 600 young people increased access to the arts, the Government claims. |
Museums receive over £12m amid cuts in arts funding
03/08/2016 Museums across the country are to receive millions in funding to transform them into ‘sustainable and resilient businesses’, at a time when investment in the arts is decreasing. |
Bradford museum defends decision to move exhibition to London
30/03/2016 A Bradford museum has defended its decision to move a valuable photography exhibition to London, despite local opposition. |
Council-run museums under threat from cuts
13/01/2016 Cuts to public funding are hitting all museums, but those run by local authorities are the worst off, according to survey. |
Pressure group launches art attack on councils
04/09/2015 UK councils own at least 5.5m works of art worth an estimated £2bn but are displaying just a fraction of pieces, new research has found. |
Council to pay compensation over Nazi-looted artwork
14/08/2015 A Scottish council is to pay compensation to a German Jewish woman’s family after it emerged Nazi-looted artwork was in a local museum. |
Export ban on ancient Egyptian statue auctioned off by council
31/03/2015 A 4,000-year-old statue controversially auctioned off by a council for almost £16m has been stopped from leaving the UK for up to a year. |
Magna Carta original uncovered in council’s archive
09/02/2015 An original edition of the Magna Carta potentially worth up to £10m has been found in a Kent council’s archives. |
Winners of Solent Design Awards announced
25/11/2014 The Mary Rose Museum (pictured) has been chosen as the People’s Choice for 2014 in this year’s Solent Design Awards. |
Council barred from Museums Association
02/10/2014 Northampton has been banned from the Museums Association (MA) for at least five years following the sale of an Egyptian statue. |
Lib Dems in free museum vow
18/08/2014 The Liberal Democrats will pledge to protect free access to museums and galleries in their 2015 General Election manifesto. |
Northampton museums lose accreditation after council’s Egyptian statue sale
01/08/2014 Two museums run by Northampton Borough Council have lost their accreditation status following a controversial decision to auction off an ancient Egyptian statue. |
Northampton BC under-fire after selling Egyptian statue for £16m
11/07/2014 Northampton Borough Council has been heavily criticised for selling an ancient Egyptian statue to fund local museum improvements. |
Shell is helping power the journey towards a circular paving industry with Shell Bitumen LT R, a new product for roads that uses plastics destined for landfill as part of the additives to make the bitumen.
Effective Energy Group is now offering its support to the 40 Local Authorities who have received a share of the £430m to deliver their projects on the ground by surveying properties and installing measures.
Dougie Belmore explains how one of the main interfaces between you and Bacs is about to change.