The Director of Communities and Citizens submitted a report to Cabinet to consider options for charging a small entry fee to visit the museum and consider options for eligibility for concessionary and free entry. 

Cabinet is recommended to:

1.    Charge an entry fee for entry to the Museum of Oxford

2.    Approve the standard entry fee charges as proposed in Appendix 1

3.    Approve the concessions eligibility and concessionary charges as proposed in Appendix 1

4.    Approve the eligibility for free access as proposed in Appendix 1

5.    Delegate the implementation of charging from January 2026 to the Director of Citizens and Community Services

Cabinet resolved to:

1. Charge an entry fee for entry to the Museum of Oxford
2. Approve the standard entry fee charges as proposed in Appendix 1
3. Approve the concessions eligibility and concessionary charges as proposed in Appendix 1
4. Approve the eligibility for free access as proposed in Appendix 1
5. Delegate the implementation of charging from January 2026 and the authority to make any minor changes to the charging model for the museum to the Director of Citizens and Community Services.

The Director of Communities and Citizens had submitted a report to Cabinet to consider options for charging a small entry fee to visit the museum and consider options for eligibility for concessionary and free entry. 

Councillor Hollingsworth presented the report. He noted the positive work of the museum, as well as the difficulties it has faced to meet the necessary income levels. He said that the report in part emanated from a need for them to think more creatively about how they fund the museum. The report proposes an approach which is used by nearly a quarter of local authority run museums, and there are reductions in this fee and opportunities for free entry to support continued access to the museum for individuals from all backgrounds. The report will also allow the managers of the museum to make minor changes to fees, as it becomes necessary. Councillor Hollingsworth noted the challenges that are faced whenever change is made but also stated their optimism that this approach will be tenable.

Paula Redway, the Culture and Community Development Manager, reiterated the high quality of work and customer service provided by the museum’s staff and the good work of the museum. Despite this, she noted that visitor numbers had not grown as needed since 2021. She noted the ‘pay as you can’ model that had been introduced to the museum, and although this did increase income over time, it did not meet the levels needed. In deciding on this approach, the Culture and Community Development Manager said that they drew information and research from across the sector to look at the impact of introducing a fee. She said that nationally, local authority run museums tend to be under threat, and they had been successful in securing a grant from the Arts Council to help them restructure the museum. This will help with their marketing, fundraising, and current deficit situation. She stated that the grant funding, combined with the fee, was the only option available for them to reach the financial position needed.

Councillor Brown expressed support for the proposals in the report and the work of the museum.

Councillor Munkonge said that the report could provide greater clarity to enhance assurances on the expected income. He asked if they had any benchmarking data to back up the projections in the report and asked what systems would manage the free and discounted entries to the museum.

Councillor Hollingsworth acknowledged that they did have limited data and one of the reasons for this was that they had not implemented a charging scheme. He noted the considerable amount of work they had done in the creation of the report and his confidence that this was the best way forward.

The Culture and Community Development Manager said that the charging model would help them to gather more data. She said that they would monitor the new charging model closely. The data that they gather through this model will allow them to better understand who does and does not visit the museum and help them to better engage with a broader range of communities in the city. The Culture and Community Development Manager highlighted the work of volunteers at the museum and their dedicated work to support the museum.

Councillor Turner noted the tight budget positions of the Council and that in this situation the Council had to make tough choices about funding things they wanted to fund and things they had to fund. He asked how individuals with no recourse to public funds would receive support to access the museum. Additionally, he asked if people who had contributed to a temporary exhibition would be able to receive a concession to visit the museum. Finally, Councillor Turner asked what timescale they would need to gain a sense of whether or not the approach was working.

The Culture and Community Development Manager said that they have partners they work with to provide support for individuals who have no access to public funds and their free access has already been considered and included.

Councillor Brown asked if the current recommendation was sufficient to cover the delegation to make minor changes to the charging model as needed.

Councillor Hollingsworth responded that in the event of an acute problem, they could reconsider the approach early on. However, with the funding they’re receiving and the partnerships they intend to form, it would likely take at least twelve months in a normal year and ideally twenty four or even thirty six months to test to see if they’ll be successful. Councillor Hollingsworth noted the pending changes that would be introduced by Local Government Reorganisation and the impacts these would have.

Councillor Chapman asked if they had needed to raise extra funds to help them win the Arts Council grant.

The Culture and Community Development Manager said that they had not been required to provide match funding. The Arts Council required them to provide a plan for how they would implement necessary changes to the museum’s management.

Councillor Chapman said that the plan was reassuring. He asked that the team clarify what they mean by state benefits in their communications with the public about the new fee for the museum. He commended the officers for their work on the plan and report.

Councillor Linda Smith agreed that they needed to be explicit about what they mean by state benefits and suggested that they work with the Leisure Service team to ensure that their messaging and approach is clear, consistent, and fair.

Councillor Brown proposed a small addition to the final recommendation, to include the authority to make minor changes to the charging model for the museum, as needed.

With the change in the final recommendation:

Cabinet resolved to:

1. Charge an entry fee for entry to the Museum of Oxford
2. Approve the standard entry fee charges as proposed in Appendix 1
3. Approve the concessions eligibility and concessionary charges as proposed in Appendix 1
4. Approve the eligibility for free access as proposed in Appendix 1
5. Delegate the implementation of charging from January 2026 and the authority to make minor changes to the charging model for the museum to the Director of Citizens and Community Services.