Declaring that they “have a central role to play in sustaining and developing cultural, social, educational, and economic well-being,” the head of the new British agency that oversees libraries, museums, and archives has announced the creation of a £600,000 ($895,000 U.S.) two-year fund to help collections pool their resources.
As part of the process, libraries and museums should consider selling parts of their collections, sharing items among themselves, and taking exhibits to pubs and schools, Lord Evans of Temple Guiting, chairman of Resource, told the July 19 London Times. Museums in particular should take a “less precious approach to some of their collections,” he said.
Resource replaced both the Library and Information Commission and the Museums and Galleries Commission in April.
Lord Evans said Resource would consider using computer links to form “a cultural network for the United Kingdom” and would also seek a “voice in the center of government” for libraries and museums, since the arts have been “rather low down the agenda of any government you care to name.”
Posted July 24, 2000.