One of the interesting things about very significant events is that it can sometimes be very hard to think clearly about what lies on the other side of them. As I write, the Olympic Opening Ceremony is 86 days, 1 hour and 19 minutes away. It will, I am sure be a huge spectacle. Medals will be won and lost, nations celebrated and 24-hour media coverage live-streamed into every corner of our lives.

But what about the day after the closing ceremony – when the last visitor has made their way through the turnstiles, the detritus cleared and the merchandise removed from the shelves. Where does culture stand the day after the Olympics? (more…)

The Collections Trust has secured major European Commission investment in projects worth a total of €8m to help museums, archives and libraries share their collections online safely and sustainably. (more…)

The Collections Trust is supporting a petition to encourage the European Commission to reinstate Cultural Heritage as a priority in the 8th Framework HORIZON 2020 funding programme.

The omission of cultural heritage from HORIZON 2020 would have serious long-term consequences for the availability of funds for research and development in cultural organisations around Europe. It would undermine the basis of existing policy and funding programmes, potentially for many years to come.

Please help lend your voice to the petition, and encourage the Commission to reconsider their position and reinstate cultural heritage!

Smartphone users up and down the country are being encouraged to celebrate UK public libraries by ‘putting their library on the map’ this weekend.

‘Put Your Library on the Map’ is a campaign led by the Collections Trust, with the support of the Society of Chief Librarians and Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) to encourage people to show their support for their local libraries, and to find out about the exciting range of services they offer. (more…)

Times of economic and political hardship have a powerful way of focussing the mind. Since the first impact of the credit crunch in 2008, organisations everywhere have had to look to their core business, to simplify their operation and to get creative in finding new ways of adding value to people’s lives.

In this kind of environment, managers have to make a simple calculation – things which contribute to the bottom-line of the organisation and enable it to make the most of new opportunities come to the fore. Things which do not are ‘restructured’, reduced or removed entirely.

Museums, libraries and archives depend on a seamless cooperation between front and back-of-house. None of the rich online or offline experiences they create is possible without effective stewardship of the collections. Stewardship of the collections has no purpose if it is not driven by delivery. (more…)