Plans to merge Northumberland Museums with Tyne and Wear sites approved

Woodhorn Museum in Ashington
Sites such as Woodhorn Museum, in Ashington, will now be run by the council alongside Tyne and Wear Museums. Credit: NCJ Media

Management of key cultural sites in Northumberland will be taken in-house in a bid to improve visitor experiences amid rising cost pressures.

Charitable trust Museums Northumberland had operated sites such as Woodhorn Museum, in Ashington, and the Chantry Bagpipe Museum, in Morpeth.

Now, those sites will be run by the council as it enters into a “shared services arrangement” alongside Tyne and Wear Museums (TWAM).

Bosses at the council have insisted that jobs at the trust will be protected, with existing staff set to be transferred over, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reports.

Speaking at the meeting of the council’s cabinet on Tuesday (7 October), portfolio holder for culture Cllr Jeff Watson outlined the reasons for the changes.

He said: “The contract we had with Museums Northumberland expired last year. We agreed to extend that for another year while we had an independent review of all of our services.

“The outcome of that review was a shared museum service between ourselves and Tyne and Wear Museums would be the best and most effective value for money option for us. It was one that we believe will improve our offer to the general public.

“TWAM has done this for a number of years and it is highlighted as exemplary.

“Culture in Northumberland is very important to us. It is part of our whole make-up of healthy lives and how we look after our residents.

“We’re managing to sustain a good level of culture even though it is a non-statutory requirement and we need to have value for money.

"Throughout this process we have tried to be very inclusive – we have involved Museums Northumberland all the way through.”

Unlike the rest of the county’s services, museums provision in Berwick will bedelivered through a partnership approach between English Heritage, the King’s Own Scottish Borderers (KOSB), the Maltings (Berwick) and the county council through the Living Barracks project.

This aims to transform Berwick Barracks into a “thriving cultural hub and visitor destination” over the next five years.

The changes were unanimously approved by the cabinet.

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