We’re pleased to reveal the successful applications in the latest round of Museum Fundamentals, funded by Pilgrim Trust and The Julia Rausing Trust.
This grant scheme encourages our small and medium sized museum members to create projects based on their collection’s needs, which improve knowledge, care and access to our nation’s heritage. As with the first round, the volume of applications received demonstrates the need within the membership for ‘back of house’ activity, and the panel were impressed by the ambition and passion of applicants.
The panel received 85 applications to the autumn round of the Museum Fundamentals grant. They invited 16 organisations to the stage two round, and 13 projects were awarded funding. £125,692.13 has been awarded to the following AIM members:
Avoncroft Museum £8,078.36
Laying the foundations: creating an accessible collections store and educational hub
Britten Pears Arts £10,850
Restoring Benjamin Britten’s viola to keep it playing publicly
Chawton House £3,490.95
Caring for Chawton House: improving collections care in a move towards Accreditation
Corinium Museum £3,102.60
Bronze Age Chieftain: the conservation of a rare group of Bronze Age objects
Cyfarthfa Castle £9,721
The voice figures of Margaret Watts-Hughes: a conservation plan
Eskdale Mill, £8,409
Bakehouse refurbishment including provision of volunteer support
Glasgow Printmakers £3,375. 58
Celebrating Connections: enhancing access to digital media, rehoming, and digitising project
Museum of the Order of St John £18,621
First aid on camera: preserving St John Ambulance’s photographic collection
Stanley Spencer Gallery £8,245
Development of a new collection cataloguing and management system
The Green Howards Museum £10,398
Duplicate, duplicate, duplicate: improving accountability at the Green Howards Museum
The Jazz Centre £20,000
Tune-in to heritage: digitising BBC’s golden age jazz broadcasts
The Royal Hampshire Regiment Museum £3,200
Medal conservation and repacking project: implementing the collections audit recommendations
Torquay Museum, £18,200.64
Collections care improvements in Torquay Museums Top Store
This is the second round of Museum Fundamentals. If you’d like to apply for the next round, you’ll find all the details at the link below. The closing date for expressions of interest for round three is 5pm on Friday 6 February 2026.
AIM Pilgrim Trust Audits
The panel received 18 applications, and nine applications received funding. The basic grant award offers the organisations a grant of £1,200 (+VAT and expenses) to work with a conservator for three days. The conservator prepares a report which considers the agents of decay and how to make improvements to the display and store environment to improve collections care.
- Kent Mining Museum
- Hundred Heroines
- Maryport Museum
- Deaf History Archive Scotland
- RAF Snaith Museum
- Moor Pool Heritage Trust
- Anaesthesia Heritage Centre
- Emery Walker Trust
- Torfaen Museum
The closing date for the next round of Collections Care Audits is 5pm on Friday 27 March 2026. All the details are at the link below.
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