Dear colleague

Here are this week’s news items:

1. There are just a few days left before the closure on Friday 25 May of the SHARE Training Needs Survey at http://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/SHARE_Training_Needs_2018/. Cambridgeshire’s response rate so far is a bit behind some other counties, so please respond now if you have not already done so.
2. SHARE’s benchmarking survey for 2017-2018 has now been launched at www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/EastofEngland1718. Last year’s survey had a very high rate of returns from Cambridgeshire and the survey has proved very effective for research and advocacy purposes, so please do make your return before 31 August.
3. Apologies to Whittlesey Museum whose excellent project which addresses a range of museum environment issues is described in https://museumsincambs.org/about-mic/cambridgeshire-museums-small-grants-2017-18/. I accidentally omitted to list the project in last week’s News.
4. Just one more (short) survey for you, this one being entirely optional! It is to inform some research on the impact of the loss of Accreditation and is at https://surveyhero.com/c/4c0161ff/b42729c274ba8ed6.
5. The University Museums Conference is being held this year at the Zoology Museum in Cambridge on 3 July. The theme is international engagement. Book at click here.
6. The Weston Anniversary Fund is open for applications for up to £150k for community facilities. For information click here.
7. The Norfolk and Norwich Festival is advertising for a Project Manager, closing date 4 June, here.

Dear colleague

Here are this week’s news items:

1. The report on the small grant projects for 2017-2018 is now available at https://museumsincambs.org/about-mic/cambridgeshire-museums-small-grants-2017-18/. There were five excellent projects, at Burwell Museum, Ely Museum, St Neots Museum, the Stained Glass Museum and the Cambridge Museum of Technology.
2. Burwell Museum has another batch of objects for disposal (see attached). As usual if you are interested contacted Steve Crane at sacrane@btinternet.com.
3. The next meeting of the Cambridgeshire Heritage Engagement Group (CHEG) is at Kettle’s Yard at 2pm on 12 June. If you have attended previous meetings you should receive the details very soon, but if not let me know and we can add you to the mailing list.
4. The Farmland Museum is advertising for a Marketing Consultant at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/52068.htm, closing date 14 June.
5. The Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is advertising for a Collections Assistant (Asian Anthropology) at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/52055.htm, closing date 10 June.
6. The Museum of Cambridge is advertising for a Community Participation Coordinator at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/52052.htm, closing date 4 June.

Best regards

Dear colleague

Firstly, I’m sorry to have to retract the announcement I made in MiC News no. 125 that the next Museums in Cambridgeshire meeting had been arranged for 15 June. No sooner had I mailed that date than I received details of the Museum Remix being held in Cambridge on 14-15 June (see attachment). To avoid this unfortunate clash, the date of the MiC meeting at Peterborough Museum has now been re-arranged to be on Friday 13 July. I must also apologise for omitting the word ‘Strategy’ from last week’s announcement; when I said that the meeting would ‘…review the Museum’ I meant to say the meeting would ‘…review the Museum Strategy’!

Secondly, please find attached an open letter to all museums which wish to subscribe to Museums in Cambridgeshire for 2018-2019. As you will see the subscription remains at £50 per museum. If you are not the person in your museum who normally deals with these matters, would you be kind enough to forward this letter to that person?

Here are this week’s other news items:

1. I am pleased to announce a trustee muster open to trustees from all MiC member museums, to be held at Ely Museum on 19 July at 4pm. If you are a trustee and are interested in attending please let me know asap. I can then add you (or any other trustee who you know is interested) to my mailing list for the event, which will examine a range of issues of current interest to museum trustees.
2. Sincere congratulations are due to Ely Museum and Ramsey Rural Museum on achieving Full Accreditation.
3. SEMFed have a Study Day at the Roald Dahl Museum on 28 June. For details go to https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/semfed-study-day-roald-dahl-museum-tickets-45780728391.

Dear colleague

I am pleased to announce that the next meeting of Museums in Cambridgeshire (MiC) will take place at Peterborough Museum on Friday 15 June. Please save the date, and I will circulate the agenda and timings etc in the next week or so. A key focus of the meeting will be to consider the MiC Activity Plan for 2018-2019 and to review the Museum Strategy (this is currently being updated with a view to a formal launch at the AGM in the autumn). We will also consider priorities for countywide museum projects.

I believe a few people may not have received MiC News no. 124 because the email attachments were too big. If you did not receive 124 please let me know and I’ll resend it without attachments.

Finally, may I mention the new website for Wisbech and Fenland Museum at http://www.wisbechmuseum.org.uk/index.php?

Dear colleague

There are a number of posts being advertised and other news this week:

1. The Centre for Computing History is looking for a Collections Manager, closing date 9 May, at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51849.htm.
2. IWM Duxford have two retail and admissions posts on offer, closing dates 11 May, at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51839.htm and https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51841.htm.
3. The Stained Glass Museum is recruiting consultants and part-time posts for their 2-year HLF Resilient Heritage Project. For more information see http://stainedglassmuseum.com/job_vacancies.html. The roles are:
4. Project Administrator, closing date 18 May; Evaluation Consultant and Masterplan Consultant, closing dates 14 June.
5. The SWIM project is now finished and I am pleased to attach the evaluation report, which I will also soon upload to the MiC webpages.
6. This year’s University Museums Group Conference: ‘Foreign exchange? University museums and international engagement’ is being held at the
   University Museum of Zoology on 3 July and looks very interesting indeed. Visit the conference website for the full programme: http://universitymuseumsgroup.org/events/conference-2018/.
7. I have a few items of equipment which I am happy to loan to MiC members: one small digital camera (not an SLR) and one Edirol voice recorder.

Dear colleague

With apologies for radio silence caused by my annual leave, here are some current items of news of interest to Cambridgeshire museums:

1. Attached is the latest batch of items for disposal from Burwell Museum. As usual if you are interested please contact Steve Crane at sacrane@btinternet.com.
2. The University of Cambridge Museums are advertising for a Head of Programmes, closing date 30 April, at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51608.htm.
3. The National Heritage Centre for Horseracing and Sporting Art in Newmarket is advertising for a Collections Care Conservator, closing date 21 May, (see attached).
4. May I please encourage you to complete SHARE’s annual training needs survey which closes on 25 May, at SHARE Training Needs Survey. You can respond to the survey, which is crucial for SHARE’s planning, on behalf of your organisation or as an individual.
5. SHARE has also launched the excellent Mystery Shopping Scheme and I encourage you to sign up! You will need attend the training on 11 or 12 May and more details are available on the www.sharemuseumseast.org.uk.
6. The South and East Museums Federation has one of their very good study days at Palace House in Newmarket on 11 May. There’s a chance to see behind the scenes!
7. Chatteris Museum has an exhibition about the Ferry Hill Tumulus opening on 26 May (see attached).

Best wishes

Dear colleague

As all the 14 partner museums in the ACE and MiC-funded SWIM project will be aware, the two project officers, Mark Copley and Sarah Coleman, sadly left the County Council at the end of their contracts on 16 March. I’m sure all MiC members will join me in thanking them for doing such great work and for leaving the significant legacy in terms of improved resilience. The final evaluation report is currently being finalised and I will post it on the MiC web pages as soon as it is ready.

For other news, the latest museum job postings include several relevant to Cambridgeshire:

1. The Museum of Cambridge is now embarking on its HLF Resilient Heritage project and they are advertising for a Transitional Project Officer, closing date 26 March. See https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51382.htm.
2. The Farmland Museum is advertising for a new Chair of Trustees, closing date 20 April at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51365.htm.
3. North Herts Museum is looking for an Assistant Curator, closing date 26 March, at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51309.htm.
4. Vivacity Peterborough is offering a Heritage Events internship, closing date 3 April, at https://www.le.ac.uk/museumstudies/Jobs2/full_job_descriptions/51293.htm.
5. The Fitzwilliam Museum is looking for a Front of House Host, closing date 26 March, at http://www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/16870/.