Decision details

Sandwell Museums had full accreditation before 2015 for 3 of sites. But this was downgraded to provisional accreditation status as the Forward Plan and Museum Policies had not been approved and adopted formally by the cabinet. Achieving full Museum Accreditation status supports those involved with a museum/service to deliver high quality services that are open and accessible and help people interact with the collections and protect/conserve them for the future while also ensuring people are at the centre of services and monitoring quality services to communities and users. The Museum Accreditation scheme does this by making sure museums manage their collections properly, engage with visitors/key stakeholders, and are governed appropriately. It also opens-up opportunities for museums such as external funding opportunities and new partnerships – giving reputational confidence to potential donors (collections/funding) and other key supporters.

Agreed that approval be given to the Director of Borough Economy to approve and adopt Sandwell Museums and Arts Service Forward Plan and Policies as detailed below in order to progress a submission from Sandwell Museums Service towards achieving full accreditation status – as part of Arts Council England’s (ACE) national Museum Accreditation Scheme.