Climate Action

Training comprises events in the national Roots & Branches programme and the London local authority programme.

The grants support museums to accelerate their action for environmental responsibility and enable them to respond to climate change.

The climate emergency is the most significant challenge for us all today. This programme has been developed, using funding from Arts Council England, in line with the Art Council England’s Investment Principle to create environmental responsibility in the cultural sector.

The grants give museums a helping hand in understanding and reducing their own impact and communicating climate actions with audiences, peers and stakeholders.

We fund grants in the following three areas:

1. Understanding the data – museums use data to understand their environmental impacts and responsibilities in the context of local and global impacts of climate change
2. Plan, action and change – museums take organisation-wide action, developing plans to adapt, change, and mitigate their impacts
3. Influence and advocate – museums become advocates of environmental action in their local communities and wider cultural sector, seeking to accelerate action

Closing date for applications is 12pm on Mon 18 May 2026. Applications submitted after this deadline will not be accepted.

MDL has £10,000 (grants of between £500 and £2,000 are available) to allocate to London’s non-national, non-NPO museums in 2026–2027, to help accelerate their action for environmental responsibility and enable them to respond to climate change.

The climate emergency is the most significant challenge for us all today. These grants will give museums a helping hand in understanding and reducing their own impact and communicating climate actions with audiences, peers and stakeholders.

Projects will need to be completed by Sun 7 Mar 2027. More information on eligibility as well as the type of projects the grants programme will support can be found in the guidance for applicants below.

If you would like to apply, please complete and return an application form, along with any supporting documents to [email protected].

If you're unsure whether your project would be eligible, have questions about the grant criteria or would like to discuss your project in more detail, please do get in touch with Yvette Shepherd, Museum Development Officer Organisational Health. Or join us at one of two online coffee sessions on Tue 21 Apr or Thu 23 Apr.

We'll announce our current grant museums for 2026–2027 in June once the assessment panel has met and the applicants have been notified of the outcome of their application.

The grants funded the following museums:

• Dulwich Picture Gallery
• Foundling Museum
• Fulham Palace
• London Museum of Water and Steam

Projects will be completed by March 2026 and detailed case studies will be available from July 2026 onwards.

The grants funded the following museums:

• Dulwich Picture Gallery
• Foundling Museum
• Fulham Palace
• Hackney Museum
• London Museum of Water and Steam
• Wimbledon Museum
• Royal College of Nursing Museum