Charity unable to afford museum repairs - report

The charity that runs a trio of York museums is at "a critical juncture of its existence", a report has warned.

The report from the York Museum Trust - which manages the Yorkshire Museum, York Castle Museum and York Art Gallery - said its current cash reserves covered less than two months of operating costs.

The report stated the trust was unable to afford improvements to the facilities, including urgently-needed repairs of the Yorkshire Museum's roof, which remained unfunded after it missed out on a £5m Arts Council bid.

It said: "With continued deficits... we are relying on a £1m letter of credit from the council, which is supporting us as a last resort."

The report added: "The council and the trust are working together to look at the trust's funding model, to ensure all venues can continue to meet the expectation of visitors and protect the generation of income."

The trust is set to end the financial year with an £111,000 deficit, up from £54,000 in 2023-4, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

This year's budget is set at £321,000, which accounts for falling visitor numbers, with the council giving £300,000 to the trust annually - down from £600,000 in 2015 and £1.1m in 2014.

Trust figures showed York Castle Museum's visitor numbers for 2024-25 were forecast to be 234,650 by March, up from 209,235 in the previous year.

This was compared to the overall total for the Castle Museum, Yorkshire Museum and York Art Gallery, which fell from 406,014 in 2023-4 to 386,500 in 2024-5.

Councillors are set to discuss the report at the Children, Culture and Communities Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday.

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