A town council which upped its budget to £50,000 for community events in 2024/25 – which includes a free rock festival – is being urged to think again about cutting funding to its prestigious 19th century museum.
Wisbech Town Council offered a “partnership” last year to maintain £20,000 annual support to the Wisbech and Fenland Museum but only if five instead of the current one town councillor were allowed to join its board of directors.
It would have meant five of the proposed 12 directors would be town councillors with one of the other posts continuing to be held by a Fenland district councillor.
The museum vetoed the proposal and accepted an alternative offer by the council that will see the £20,000 reduce in each financial by £2,500 “with a view to that funding reducing to zero in eight years’ time”.
Now an independent member of the Tory controlled council is urging grant funding of the museum to be revisited.
Cllr Dave Patrick has tabled a motion to the next council meeting to give “full reconsideration to reinstating its grant funding to Wisbech & Fenland Museum on the same terms and conditions as it was previously”.
He said: “The museum has been grant funded by various councils for many years, originally by Wisbech Borough and then Fenland District Council and finally Wisbech Town Council.
“I believe that this funding has been absolutely crucial for Wisbech and Fenland Museum in order for it to operate effectively.
“I also believe there is no necessity for an increase in the number of Wisbech town councillors to be given extra seats on the governing board believing it unnecessary.”
Cllr Patrick said a survey he conducted on social media found 95 per cent agreed the museum should continue to receive grant funding from the town council.
Last year the council was reminded that it had increased annual funding to the museum from £5,000 to £20,000 in 2017/28.
Councillor Sam Hoy reported back on a meeting with the museum directors and, according to council minutes, “made the point that there is the need to achieve the correct balance between the spending of taxpayers’ money and the benefit of the museum to the town.
“Councillor (Susan) Wallwork expressed her concurrence with Councillor Hoy’s comments”.
Councillor (Steve) Tierney said the town council was in a “difficult place” with the museum.
On the one hand, he said, there is the desire to help the museum to grow and thrive – hence providing funding of £20,000 for each of the previous six financial years – but “on the other hand”, it was not the town council’s responsibility to fund the museum using taxpayers’ money.
He said it had always been his understanding that at the time of the town council increasing the level of financial support to the museum it had been seen as a short-term “rescue” measure, providing time for the museum to “get its affairs in order” and move to a situation where it could be mostly self-funding or applying for other financial support.
“Councillor Tierney expressed the opinion that the current arrangement, of the Town Council providing an annual grant of £20,000 but with no oversight or say in how that money from the taxpayers is used, cannot continue,” the minutes record.
He proposed the two options that offered to maintain current funding or scale back funding with conditions on new council directors being appointed.
Cllr Tierney said accepting the option of maintaining funding at £20,000 a per year would create “a full partnership between Wisbech Town Council and the Wisbech and Fenland Museum”.
He said the town council would, as a full partner, then join-in the efforts of promotion, generating new ideas and building a strong future for the museum.
In this way, he said, the town council and the people of Wisbech could be assured that the funding provided through taxation has full democratic oversight.
And that the council’s representatives, and consequently the council as a whole, would be part of the team going forwards, to help drive growth and change and assist in delivering an exciting future.
Cllr Tierney said there could be discussions between Wisbech Town Council and the Wisbech and Fenland Museum as to the most appropriate arrangements to achieve the suggested partnership approach to running the museum.
In December last year the council heard that the museum had declined the offer from the town council to appoint five councillors as directors.
Town clerk Terry Jordan said that as a consequence the funding from Wisbech Town Council in 2024/25 would reduce to £17,500; reduce to £15,000 in 2025/26 and so on. The final payment would be £2,500 in the financial year 2030/31.
Chairman Steve McGregor has previously thanked Wisbech Town Council for its “substantial annual contribution of £20,000 since 2017” as he announced that new arrangements for the future have been agreed.
He said that since the museum sought external expert advice, consulted the Charity Commission, and considered funding arrangements of comparable museums, an agreement has been reached with the town council on the two funding options it had offered towards the museum’s running costs going forward.
“Under the new deal, in April 2024 the annual £20,000 grant will reduce to £17,500, and there will be a further reduction of £2,500 each year from then down to zero,” he said.
“The town council will continue to have one representative on the board of the museum in addition to one appointed representative from Fenland District Council, and the museum retains its independence.
“These are very difficult times for heritage organisations, particularly museums, but we are determined to continue to provide a stimulating and interesting experience for the thousands who visit us each year, in particular the families and schools.
“We know we hold important and unique collections for the people of Wisbech and locality to enjoy, and we also appreciate that we need to redouble our efforts to raise enough money each year to keep the museum operating at its present level, and that’s a major task.”
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Wisbech Town Council agreed it would deliver the following community events and festivals in 2024/25:
Wisbech Rose Fair on 29 June 2024
WisBEACH Rock Festival (a combination of WisBEACH Day and the Wisbech Rock Festival) on 4 August 2024
Christmas Lights Switch-on event on 1 December 2024
Wisbech Unsung Heroes Awards ceremony on 25 January 2025; nominations to be sought in late 2024.
The council also agreed to “continue to support, as appropriate” other community events within Wisbech, such as Armed Forces Day, Wisbech Bandstand concerts and the Wisbech Christmas Fayre.
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Wisbech Town Council continues to own the lease on Wisbech Castle.
Lack of volunteers however has restricted the number of times it has been able to open to the public. Unlike other places in town, it did not open for either of this month’s heritage weekends.
Town clerk Terry Jordan told councillors in June that Wisbech Castle continues to be an extremely popular venue for paranormal investigations and almost every weekend this year has a booking for an event.
He said that enquiries continue to be received regularly, and bookings are now being taken for 2025. It is anticipated that it will not be many months before the council starts to receive bookings for 2026.
A booking for a wedding in November 2024 has been taken, and viewings in relation to other potential wedding bookings take place on an occasional basis.
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Two Wisbech charities have recognised the invaluable contribution to the town and district made by Wisbech and Fenland Museum learning and community officer Louise Haselgrove.
The Hudson Foundation and the Elizabeth Wright Charity have renewed their pledge to fund Louise’s role at the Museum for three years from January 31, 2025.
Former teacher and museum professional Louise joined the Museum staff in 2019 to take charge of a two-year outreach project to all communities in the district funded by the Heritage Lottery.
When those first two years ended in April 2021, the two local charities stepped up to keep Louise at the museum for three more years.
Since April 2021, Louise has extended her role and now as well as community outreach she organises the museum’s volunteers and all its education activities. She also stages community and learning events, art competitions, exhibitions and workshops.
On March 31st, 2023, the Museum’s five-year Refounders Scheme ended. It had brought in £35,000 in pledged donations each year since 2017.
In April 2023 Wisbech Town Council paid its full annual grant of £20,000 for the last time – by agreement this will reduce each year by £2,500 down to zero.
“That all adds up to a big hole to fill so it would have been impossible to continue employing Louise without outside help,” says a museum spokesperson.
Opening hours Wisbech and Fenland Museum
Wed – Sat
10am – 4pm
(Last Admissions 3.45pm)
