Lithgow Museums’ Networking Group

Lithgow Museums’ Networking Group meeting at Simmo's Museum, Glen Davis.

The Lithgow area is a hidden gem of history and heritage. Visitors and locals alike can enjoy the history of one of the most fascinating areas in Australia through the many museums, historic sites and heritage organizations. From aboriginal history through to the history of the Small Arms Factory and from Hartley through to Glen Davis there are sites and museums to learn about aboriginal, convict, mining, social, railway and factory history.

In March 2012 a group of museum and heritage organization operators from the Lithgow LGA met at Eskbank House and Museum to have a chat about how they could help each other out. From this initial gathering the Lithgow Museums’ Networking Group was formed. The group meets monthly and our aims are: educating each other to improve the quality of our museums, networking to promote each other’s museums and share resources, co-operating to create a combined museum experience for visitors and sharing enthusiasm and to enjoy each other’s company as museum and heritage enthusiasts. It is exciting to be able to work together, take strength from each other and present a combined museums  experience to visitors and locals.

There are 12 organisations in the group, some able to attend regularly others coming when they can or contributing via email, etc. The groups include: Lithgow and District Family History Society (LDFHS), Lithgow Small Arms Factory Museum (LSAFM), Simmo’s Museum, Eskbank House and Museum, Lithgow Library Learning Centre (LLLC), Lithgow State Mine Heritage Park, Lithgow State Mine Railway Ltd, Hartley Historical Village, Portland History Group, Rydal Village Association, Delta Expo and Newnes Pub. Each organisation takes turns hosting the meetings and this has been an invaluable part of getting to know each other’s museums and being able to share resources and promote other museums to visitors.

The group has participated in several group activities aimed at increasing visitor numbers to museums and generally get the word out that Lithgow’s Heritage is amazing and worth a visit. 

Our first activity was an Open Day for many of the museums in the group on International Museums Day 2012. International Museums Day is in May and is celebrated by over 30 000 museums throughout the world.  With a short time to organize and limited advertising most museums still saw an increase in visitation on the day of over 500 %. The group has more plans for International Museums Day 2013 and also celebrating other international days like Volunteers Day 2012 with an afternoon tea for the wonderful volunteers in all our organizations.

The next group activity was a combined stall at Daffodils at Rydal. Photos from the different organizations were displayed and pamphlets and postcards were handed out along with our first Lithgow Heritage Newsletter outlining heritage events happening in September and October in the region. The most rewarding part of the day was talking to people about the museums and history and hearing their stories of the area. Perhaps this is infact the most rewarding part of running a museum in general.

Our next event was another stall at the Back to Hartley Celebrations on Sunday 28 October 2012. This time we included a “What is it?” table with a variety of mysterious objects for people to ponder, a “Who is it?” display of historic photos of Lithgow Citizens with room for people to comment, displays from the museums and projected historical images of the Lithgow area. Of course the most interesting part of our stall was talking heritage and history and spending time with other museum enthusiasts.

Our Christmas party will be a well earned reward for all the hard work, much of it voluntary, that all the organization participants put in to operating their museums and preserving and presenting to the public the wonderful history that is Lithgow. 

Jan Saundercock

Lithgow and District Family History Society

IMAGinE awards - Individual achievements

Nominations closed last week for the 2012 IMAGinE awards. Museums & Galleries NSW are pleased to announce that we have received the most nominations to date. We are glad so many of you want to celebrate your museum, gallery or keeping place's achievements with us.

Each fortnight we will be introducing you to the nominees and their exciting stories. 

CATEGORY 4: INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT - VOLUNTEERS

Trevor William Dean, Curator
Australian Aviation Museum, Bankstown 

Trevor is a founding member of the Australian Aviation Museum and has been involved with other aviation museums and groups affiliated with Museums Australia, giving recognition to those who keep Australia’s history of aviation alive.

Trevor has worked on many mutually beneficial partnerships with the Air Training Corp cadets, TAFE students, volunteers and with the Work for the Dole program.

To keep to museum best practice, Trevor has travelled at his own expense to study aviation museums in the UK, USA and NZ.

To obtain funds for the Museum, Trevor approached the famous Australian flying boat pilot, Captain Bryan Monkton and assisted with writing his memoirs. After the Captain sadly became ill, Trevor carried out his wishes and published the book.

Trevor Pascoe, Former President
Millthorpe & District Historical Society
Golden Memories Museum 



Trevor led the Golden Memories Museum to become the leading volunteer museum in the Central West. This included the development of the Museum’s Strategic Plan.

Trevor was passionate about the social history collection and sharing it with the community. He initiated open days to create awareness of Millthorpe’s history.

Trevor made considerable effort to recognise the outstanding achievements of volunteers.

He encouraged and assisted members with grant applications, the most recent being for the production of the Strategic Plan. He liaised with Blayney Shire Council to gain interest free loans for developing infrastructure, in particular the extensions to the Rural Technology Building.

Unfortunately, Trevor passed away earlier this year but he will be remembered for this dedication to the Museum.

Peter Feitz 
Uralla Historical Society 
McCrossin’s Mill 



Peter first became involved with the Society by serendipity. In 1986 the Society received a grant to employ a builder for restorations. Peter was employed and with volunteers, mischievously called “monkeys”, they slaved away every Sunday until the money ran out and they could no longer pay ‘Feitzy’.

“So what?” he retorted. “You blokes all work here for nothing, so that’s what I’ll be doing too, as of next Sunday!”

As a highly skilled builder, Peter has become a teacher, displaying extraordinary patience. Without exception the volunteers have come away from working bees knowing they achieved something and have learned new skills along the way. This also includes people who have been given Community Service Orders.

Kevin Jewell, Volunteer Researcher
Gerringong and District Historical Society 



Kevin has donated time on two valuable projects. The first Gerringong Then and Now has involved gathering over 800 historical photographs and returning to the location for a ‘now’ shot. By speaking to many about the project he is creating interest in local history.

The second project involves meticulously researched history articles in the local magazine. Kevin only publishes information he can verify with primary research. His articles are engaging and have contributed significantly to local historical knowledge. The editor reports most community feedback is about Kevin's articles.

One resident commented, “I suspect people who wouldn't dream of reading a history book, find the articles most accessible."

Kevin's approach to research is an inspiration to the Gerringong Historical Society. 

Ken Smith, Past President and Secretary
Parramatta & District Historical Society
Hambledon Cottage House Museum 



Ken is seen as the catalyst for positive change. Members ask "what is the next improvement he is planning". He leads by example and trains other volunteers to take over duties.

Projects include implementing planning and budgeting, introducing collection database InMagic, seeking grants for training, writing policies and procedures, finalising a Conservation Management Plan which led to a State Heritage Register listing.

He has participated in working groups involving council and other museums. Ken’s been on the M&G NSW Volunteer Reference Committee and a Standards Program reviewer. He assisted the Royal Australian Historical Society to prepare a Strategic Plan and budget.

Ken has engaged schools in museum activities, resulting in an annual History Day with some 230 students involved.

Jennifer Colless, Volunteer Member
Walgett District Historical Society
Walgett Historical Society Museum 



Since retiring 8 years ago Jennifer has channelled considerable energy into the Walgett Society.

Jennifer fundraises through raffles and tour guiding. She promptly replies to community requests for information and photographs.

As the ‘go to’ person for family trees, Jennifer developed a Family Tree Starter Kit which was launched at the 2012 Walgett Community Festival where the supporting display won Champion Exhibit. Jennifer was there distributing kits and assisting people with their family trees. The Kit is important as it encourages locals to document their history creating a rich resource for the future. Jennifer also archives historical information. Although time consuming, she want to provide a good service to the community and leave a valuable resource for future generations. 

Daphne Salt
Sutherland Shire Historical Society & Museum

Daphne is an invaluable member of the Society. Daphne is generous with her time in detailing, recording and transmitting material for the Museum.

Daphne has spent 590 hours digitising all copies of our journal which commenced in 1966. Using the Society and her own personal collection of photographs she has produced a series of tablemats which were an excellent fund raiser.

Daphne is constantly available to answer questions from members and the public. She engages the community with presentations to various groups. Daphne has also produced many books on the history of the Shire. Always approachable and full of ideas, Daphne is the cornerstone of the Society.

CATEGORY 4: INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT - PAID STAFF

Elizabeth Ann Macgregor, Director
Museum of Contemporary Art, Australia



 “I was very fortunate to fall in love with contemporary art at university and I have spent a career trying to share that passion with a wider audience.” Elizabeth Ann Macgregor

Through her ability to focus on expanding the accessibility and understanding of contemporary art, Liz Ann has changed the perception of the MCA from an elitist, inaccessible institution to an engaging success.

She introduced free entry in 2000 resulting in attendance figures increasing five-fold to over 580,000 in 2010 and secured the financial future through a combination of efficient systems, self-generated income, private, corporate and government support.

During her time with the MCA she has piloted numerous access initiatives that have simultaneously increased attendance figures.

Leszek Strzelecki, Statewide Manager of Museums Retired Commissioned Officers Association Corrective Services NSW  



Les’ passion and determination for safeguarding Corrective Services’ antiquity was instrumental in establishing the Museum in Cooma. He continues to devote time, zeal and personal sacrifice to ensure the continuation of the vision he brought to the Museum at its inception.

Les has embraced the organisation’s focus on offender rehabilitation by employing a workforce of serving offenders in the Museum, preparing those individuals for a virtuous return to the community.

Les has worked tirelessly to bring the community closer to Corrective Services NSW, through the Museum. By dispelling the unknowns about the organisation, the community has become more receptive to the essential role Corrective Services plays in creating a safer community for all of us.

Dr Nick Lomb, Curator of Astronomy, Horology, Meteorology and Surveying
Sydney Observatory (Powerhouse Museum)



While he is a world-wide renowned expert, Nick is a generous, humble person who has had major impact. He has championed the protection of Sydney's colonial history and the recognition of Indigenous Astronomy.

Nick's high profile has contributed to the scientific community's understanding of the educational role museums play, enabling contemporary scientists to appreciate the value museums have in communicating science to the broader community.

Nick has engaged the community in many aspects of his work including instigating inclusion of community contributions to the Sydney Observatory blog site. This led the Australian Financial Review to declare Sydney Observatory in the top 15 blog sites of 2008.

2011 IMAGinE Individual Achievements

The 2011 IMAGinE award nominations have closed and as always we have been inundated with entries from throughout NSW. Over the next four weeks we'll highlight the nominees in each category as we warm up for a glamorous night of canapes, wine and awards at the Australian Museum's Terrace Room.

A strong category this year is Individual Achievements celebrating specific people in our sector who have tirelessly sought excellence and innovation for their museum, gallery or keeping place. Whether volunteer or paid, these ladies and gentlemen have proved to be invaluable and irreplaceable for their organisations and the sector as a whole. 

And the nominees are . . . 


VOLUNTEER STAFF

Glen Johns contributed tirelessly to the museum sector across NSW from the late 1990s through to his death on 31st January 2011. Glen's contribution to the museum sector began with his work with the Boorowa museum in the late 1990s when he moved to Boorowa.

Within museum circles, Glen is probably best remembered as the man behind the Working Spaces  conferences held at St Clements, Galong. As a man who believed anything was possible, Glen approached Museums & Galleries NSW in 2006 with an idea for a volunteer museums conference with "no talking heads" and plenty of practical workshops. In no time, Glen had convinced the major cultural institutions in Canberra to contribute staff to run the various workshops and the Working Spaces conference was born.

Gillian Kelly has shown great leadership as a volunteer Curator working with QDHMS (Society) members and CIT Museum Studies Students with the support of QCC in transforming the Queanbeyan Museum's displays over the last 8 years. Amongst a great deal of work, Gillian has researched, developed, consulted on, planned for and led a team that has set up an average of two new exhibitions in the Museum each year.

Led by Gillian, the volunteer team  has transformed Queanbeyan Museum into a high quality and accessible community facility that tells the many stories about Queanbeyan and its history. Gillian is also a local historian and received an OAM for her contribution to the history group Lacemakers of Calais.

In April 2002, Jill Madew, a long term resident and business woman of Adaminaby, heard the heavy machinery previously used in the construction of the Snowy Hydro-Electric Scheme in NSW would be offered at auction. Under Jill's leadership, a group of Adaminaby residents formed a fundraising committee and in a frantic scramble before the auction, the committee raised $40,000. The money raised by the committee enabled the purchase of eight of the ten items earmarked as most historically important.

With the beginnings of a collection in hand, Jill converted the fundraising committee into a museum committee and set about the long and arduous task of convincing Governments through grants applications and other fundraising endeavours, that the proposed museum was needed as a tribute to one of the engineering wonders of the modern world. Next month, Snowy Scheme Museum Adaminaby opens to the public. 

On moving to Grafton in 1976, Pam Fysh became an active committee member of the Jacaranda Art Society. The society established and presented the annual Jacaranda Art Prize and founded the Grafton Art Gallery which in 1988 became the Grafton Regional Gallery. Since then, Pam's guidance and actions in developing and supporting the gallery in its programs, collections and support groups, and its facilities and equipment has always been positively and diplomatically given.

Pam Fysh has been and continues to be an active advocate for museums and galleries in the Clarence Valley and beyond. Over the last year Pam has worked with the Grafton Showground Trust to upgrade the kitchen of the Barn, a heritage listed pavilion. Pam has been instrumental in gaining a grant of $100,000 through the Community Building Partnership of the NSW Government, gaining the services of an architect pro bono and having the project completed on time.

Christina Webb has had a significant impact on the community-based Thredbo Historical Society since she joined in 2000.

From 2001 Christina undertook the duties of Honorary Secretary/Treasurer. Her work involved correspondence, minutes, membership, accounts, banking, transcription of oral histories, 3 newsletters annually, publicity and archiving of printed material. Between 2000 and 2009 the Society membership increased from circa 60 members to 200. By 2009 the volume of Secretary/Treaurer’s work had increased so much that it was necessary to split the position in three, and Christina was appointed Honorary Museum Administrator/Publicity Officer.

Christina drives half hour drive from her home in Jindabyne to Thredbo in order to open the Museum, an activity which she combines with a ski prior to opening the museum during the winter months.


PAID STAFF

Gavin Fry has been Director of Newcastle Museum since 1999. Since then he has conceived, developed, supervised and brought to completion the redevelopment of the former Newcastle Regional Museum, bringing it firmly into the 21st century as an institution of which the community and the state can be justly proud. Year after year he systematically put in place the building blocks of the project, including the sale of the former museum site, acquisition of the new Museum Storage Facility and successful application to the Commonwealth which resulted in an $8.5 million grant. This was the largest made under the RLCIP nation building program and completed a $23.5 million funding package. 

Gavin is coming to the end of a 30 plus year career in Australian museums, having worked steadily up through a range of significant roles including Senior Curator of Art at the Australian War Memorial, Deputy Director of the Australian National Maritime Museum and Museums Review Consultant for the Department of Defence.

Julie Baird has been Curator of Newcastle Museum since 2002 and Acting Deputy Director since November 2010. Since the closure of the old museum in 2007 Julie has been developing a new suite of exhibitions for the revamped museum and has recruited and led an enthusiastic team to work towards the 2011 reopening. Recruited to Newcastle from her previous role as senior curator at the Australian National Maritime Museum, Julie has become an integral part of the Hunter region museums scene, reorganising and invigorating the Hunter Chapter of Museums Australia, acting as a leader and mentor for the smaller museums in the area.

The new museum's feature exhibition, Newcastle Story, is Julie's work from conception to completion. She provided the brief, worked closely with the architects and designers and led the installation team. The outstanding result achieved in the new Newcastle Museum could not have been achieved without her knowledge, enthusiasm, commitment and passion.

In 2009, Rebekah Schulz, Manager of the Library, Museum & Entertainment for Hurstville City Council, undertook a restructure of the Hurstville Library and Information Services, Penshurst Branch Library and St George Regional Museum to meet 21st century community needs. Rebekah converged the facilities into Hurstville City Library, Museum & Gallery (LMG), a centre of cultural excellence which aims to educate, inspire and engage.

Rebekah has worked on the following major initiatives including the development of Councilor education program, Hurstville’s Community Strategic Plan 2021, The Begin-Again, a Sydney-wide art event with C3West and MCA staff and a successful campaign for the Museum & Gallery to double its opening hours.

Rebekah’s impact on our organisation is evident of her being announced the inaugural winner of HCC's Leader of the Year Award in 2010.

Gary Corbert's twenty-three year career in the museum & gallery sector commenced at Broken Hill Regional Gallery where he worked as an Education Officer. Upon the then Director's resignation, he was subsequently appointed Director - continuing to work towards establishing a strong profile for the gallery, its collections and programs. He also contributed to the museum and gallery sector in various roles including his position as Museums and Galleries Manager at Broken Hill City Council. 

In 2002, Gary instigated the Border Art Prize, which is held at the Gold Coast City Art Gallery and the Tweed River Art Gallery in alternating years. The prize aimed to showcase the wealth of local talent in the Tweed/Gold Coast regions, has become one of the most popular in the region and continues to grow in size each year.

Who will win? Book now for the 2011 IMAGinE awards presentation event!

Broken Hill

Michael Rolfe visits the Daydream Mine

On a recent trip to Broken Hill and Wilcannia it was heartening to witness first hand the collegiate and supportive relationships that exist between Broken Hill Council museum and gallery staff, Broken Hill Historical Society volunteers and West Darling Arts.

As Gallery Director, Bruce Tindale leads a committed team that has, in recent years, overseen the redevelopment of the gallery within the impressive Sully’s Emporium precinct. That work continues apace, with construction of a new collection store now well underway. When completed, it will enable the gallery’s sizeable and historic collection to be housed in the one place. With easier access, environmental controls and improved security, this project will ensure that the gallery’s collection continues to grow its profile within the dynamic history of public collections in NSW. Equally, Angela Bailey, manager of the Albert Kersten Mining & Mineral Museum runs an impressive museum dedicated to the mining history of one of NSW’s most iconic destinations.

I was also fortunate to meet several members of the Broken Hill Historical Society and to visit The Silverton Gaol Museum, Broken Hill Synagogue and the Railway, Mineral and Train Museum. In particular I want to acknowledge the work undertaken by the society in bringing to life stories associated with the Synagogue and Railway Museum. Margaret Price (a society committee member) showed great delight in telling me about the commitment and work undertaken at the Synagogue and my meeting with Clr Christine Adams and Society Chair, Shorty Reville, at the Railway Museum was loaded with my own memories of train travel and of the significant capacity and great energy volunteers bring to the museum and gallery world.

In a meeting with Broken Hill Council’s General Manager, Frank Zaknich, it was clear that council is focused on the need to maintain support for the town’s symbolic arts and cultural infrastructure. Funding of course remains an issue and the sustainability of programs is demanding that an entrepreneurial approach be pursued. This is clearly evidenced through council’s involvement in the Broken Hill Film Studio development, which will transform Central Power Station complex into state of the art film studios.

I accompanied West Darling Arts RADO, James Giddey, on a trip to Wilcannia where he has been actively involved in plans to build a community focused arts/cultural centre. We met with a range of people including local artists Eddie Harris, Waddy Harris & Kevin Cattermole along with Wilcannia Central School Principal, Michelle Nicholson. While plans for the centre are still being developed the school is actively involved in supporting efforts to generate art making and skill development opportunities for artists from throughout the community. The Darling River was roaring through town, at maybe just a metre below the bridge. In fact there was so much water, bird life and green landscape throughout my visit that one can only believe that such positive forces act as a metaphor for what was also a dynamic arts and cultural landscape.

Vale Glen Johns

Glen Johns with Bob Williams at Working Spaces 3

Museums & Galleries NSW is deeply saddened by the news of Glen John's death on Monday 31st January. Since the late 1990s, Glen has played a significant role with the museums of the Lachlan Chapter of Museums Australia (NSW). Always ready to challenge the status quo, Glen's enthusiasm, thoughtful insight and wry sense of humour were always appreciated.

Glen became involved with the Boorowa and District Historical Society in the late 1990s and was instrumental in obtaining a grant from the Commonwealth Federation fund to refurbish the museum. The funding led to the redevelopment of the museum's exhibitions to highlight the local wool industry and the introduction of new technology through a DVD about Boorowa. Always keen to learn and improve the museum, Glen approached the Powerhouse Museum and M&G NSW to run a workshop focused on the museum's Hamilton Hume textile collection. And so began Glen's enthusiasm for coordinating workshops.

Hearing that M&G NSW had begun a standards program, Glen approached us about running the program with the museums of the newly formed Lachlan Chapter of Museums Australia (NSW). Along with others from the chapter, Glen's willingness to participate and capacity to encourage everyone else to join in made for a great year with the Standards program.

Within museum circles, Glen will probably be best remembered as the man behind the Working Spaces workshop based conferences held at St Clements, Galong. As a man who believed anything was possible, Glen approached us in 2006 about an idea for a volunteer museums conference with "no talking heads" and plenty of practical workshops. Before we knew it, he had convinced the major cultural institutions in Canberra to contribute staff to run the various workshops and the Working Spaces conference was born. The conferences are live in over a weekend and provide opportunities for museum workers to get together not only to learn but to have a good time. Trivia nights, Q&A sessions and Postcards from home have given those involved the opportunity to have some fun along the way. With four conferences under their belt, Glen has left the Lachlan Chapter and the volunteer museum community of NSW with a wonderful legacy.

Our thoughts are with the Lachlan Chapter, especially Glen's wife Elizabeth at this difficult time. Glen's unique and enthusiastic approach to life will never be replaced but I feel his legacy will allow a little of him to stay with us into the future.

Congratulations to the 2010 Standards Participants!

Last Friday Sarah-Jane, Michael Rolfe and I traveled up to Dubbo to celebrate the completion of the 2010 Standards Program with the participants. There were ten museums in this year’s group, from as far as Brewarrina and Lightning Ridge, to Narromine and Rylstone. Despite the Program’s challenging demands of time, hard work and energy, everyone was a delight to work with and I was endlessly impressed by each group’s passion and dedication to develop their museum.

Our celebration was hosted by the Western Plains Cultural Centre, a really fantastic venue. It was great to catch up with everyone again, and we were fascinated to hear the tales of the recent flooding that has had such an effect on the region.

After the group kindly shared their feedback with us on their experience of the program (all very positive!), we had a quick lunch and began the presentations of the Final Reports and Certificates of Achievement. We were lucky to have Deputy Mayor of Dubbo Mathew Dickerson join us to present the reports with Michael. They both expressed their admiration for the museums’ great effort and commitment.

I’m looking forward to catching up with everyone again in Dubbo next year when we hold our workshop Access to Funding on 18th March. Hopefully this will help actualize some of the great ideas people have thought up with their reviewers during Standards 2010.

Thanks so much again to this year’s Standards museums for being such a great group! I’ve really enjoyed getting to know everyone, and look forward to staying in contact in the future.

Ted Davies, Jack Haines and Bob Richardson – Narromine Aviation Museum

Narromine Aviation Museum representatives - Ted Davies, Jack Haines and Bob Richardson

Rochelle Sutherland from the Gulgong Pioneer Museum receives her Final Report and Certificate of Achievement from Deputy Mayor of Dubbo Mathew Dickerson.

Sarah-Jane Rennie, Cr Mathew Dickerson, Michael Rolfe and Phoebe Arthur

Summerlee, Museum of Scottish Industrial Life

Last week I met with Clare Weir and Lu McNair from Summerlee, Museum of Scottish Industrial Life. Summerlee is an industrial museum focusing on coal mining and ironworks based in Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire between Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Museum is another recognised collection and highlights the success of the recognition scheme in supporting the further development of collections across Scotland.

Summerlee opened as an ironworks and associated mine in 1836. Whilst the furnaces of the ironworks ceased operation in the 1920s, the site continued as an industrial operation until the 1980s at which time it was operating as the Hydrocon Crane company. The initial museum opened on the site in 1987 as a Trust or volunteer managed operation. The museum is located on a 22 acre site with a heritage tram delivering people around the site.

Today the site is operated by North Lanarkshire council and has been recently redeveloped following an investment of GBP 10 from a range of sources including the Heritage Lottery Fund, Museums Galleries Scotland, the European Regional Development Fund, North Lanarkshire Council, charitable Trusts and individuals. The site provides wonderful opportunities for engagement through interactives such as the mock up blast furnace that leads to a pig iron casting.

There has been a conscious effort to incorporate social history onto the site alongside the large technological pieces. This was reinforced by the local community who were closely involved in the redevelopment. Older people within the community wanted to be able to take grandchildren and show them something of the way they lived, hence the addition of areas focusing on dances, banners from marches and the local movie theatre.

The museum also contains a series of row houses set up to reflect changing lifestyles of the area. The first three houses depict the nineteenth and early twentieth century, where families rented one roomed attached homes in rows. The 1940s and 1960s homes showed a continued accumulation of belongings and the extension of the homes into the backyard and roof. The museum has also developed backyards for some of the cottages, showing the changing use of gardens from a source of food to a place of leisure, over time.

With the changing economic climate, the museum is looking at how they will operate in the future. They may have less funds to develop new exhibitions but are hoping that this will provide more time for continued involvement of the community in the development of their exhibitions. They are exploring ways of expanding opportunities for volunteers, including guiding through the museum. There has been a program of involving long term unemployed people in placements at the museum which may also expand over time, perhaps leading to traineeships or apprenticeships.

Chat with Jane Robinson, Head of Museum Development

During my time at MGS I have been privileged to have one on one discussions with many of the staff members. Today I had a great chat with Jane Robinson, Head of Museum Development who outlined many of the projects and some of the future plans that MGS have for Museum Development.

Many of the MGS staff have been focused for the last week on the planning of an upcoming project Skills for the Future. This is an internship program that will see people with tertiary level education from a range of backgrounds undertaking internships with museums and galleries across Scotland. The program includes both workplace training and a series of one day workshops and it is hoped will be the beginning of a new generation of museum workers.

Like Australia, Scotland has recently developed a new curriculum. Interestingly, where Australia is working towards a national curriculum, Scotland is working on a curriculum somewhat different to that delivered in other areas of the UK. The curriculum is developed through Learning and Teaching Scotland and apparently puts the learner at the centre of the curriculum and has four key outcomes- confident individuals, responsible citizens, successful learners and effective contributors. MGS are using these concepts as a focus for museums where learning is seen as lifelong. LTS Scotland has developed an intranet for teachers and other educators called GLOW and museums are being encouraged to collaborate on material for this website.

MGS is working through a digital content strategy which focuses on four key areas- sharing, creating, delivering and preserving. This year they have focused on effective collection management systems for large industrial museums and website based issues for museums and galleries operating within local government. As is often the case in Australia, Scottish museums and galleries based within local government are confronted with a range of issues when developing websites or engaging with social networking. To work through some of these issues, MGS will be hosting a meeting with key local government museum and gallery representatives and local government IT staff. It will be interesting to hear of the outcomes of this meeting.

Earlier this year, Adrian Babbidge was the guest speaker at MGS's AGM. Adrian is a museum consultant who has done a lot of work with the Association of Independent Museums including a research study on Volunteering in Independent Museums. Adrian's study and the speech he gave at the AGM, Changing Times, Changing People outlined the changing face of volunteering, encouraging museums not to keep looking for volunteers like themselves but thinking outside the square. His research found that there are approximately 4 "groups" or generations over an 80 year period and provided an outline of the attitudes, character and values of these different generations and how they might approach volunteering. There is much food for thought with Adrian's work.