Skills-sharing series

The aim of the programme is to equip participating museums with resources and ideas to strengthen their organisation and become more welcoming to different audiences across different areas of museum work, including: programmes (exhibitions, projects and events), collections and voices they represent, audience development work, volunteers, staff and trustees, along with building and spaces.

This skills-sharing series has been devised in response to the MDE EDI Training and Support Scoping Report, in partnership with Museum Development South East (MDSE). The series will run between February 2026 and March 2027.

Each session will cover a main theme, which will explore a key area of inclusive practice that will help museums improve their welcome, accessibility and diversity to all areas of its work.

Each session will support delegates to develop new practices and think through creating some workable and realistic actions related to the theme.

Together, the series aims to enable participating museums to become more representational and relevant to its diverse local communities.

The series will support museums to embrace Arts Council England's Inclusivity and Relevance Investment Principle and their overarching Let’s Create 2020-2030 Strategy to ensure England’s diversity is fully reflected in the organisations and individuals that they support and in the culture they produce.

Museums can book onto one or all of the planned sessions on MDSE’s website.

Each session will provide delegates with theme-related:

• key resources to use
• case studies from museums on their approach to addressing the theme
• speakers from support organisations that can further support you
• opportunities to ask questions of the speakers, MD staff and other delegates to support your work
• quick and easier action points to implement within its museum (each delegate will be asked to share one action they will be taking back to the museum at the end of the session)

All paid and unpaid staff working for non-national (and non-NPO), accredited museums in London are eligible to apply for places.

Non-accredited, national, NPO and museums outside London may be allocated places if there is space, but will be a lower priority due to our core funding criteria.