4 November 2019
The Esmee Fairbairn Museum Collections Fund
More than £3.75 million of funding is available over the next three years towards core collections work and time-limited projects in UK museums that bring collections closer to people.
The Esmee Fairbairn Collections Fund, which is provided by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and administered by the Museums Association (MA), has been offering grants to museums since 2011 to fund projects that demonstrate the significance, distinctiveness and power of collections to people.
In this new phase, which was launched at the MA’s recent conference in Brighton, a total of £1.25 million per year will be awarded over the next three years. Reflecting changes to the museum sector and the findings of the MA’s ‘Empowering Collections’ report, the Fund will now be split into two tiers, with support for core collections work in museums being offered for the first time.
Around 12 grants of up to £250,000 will be available to museums and their partnerships for five-year projects that contribute to an organisation’s strategic direction and which leave a long-term legacy. Smaller grants will be offered for time-limited projects of two to three years that are ambitious, innovative or test new ways of working.
The Fund is due to open for applications later this year.