[Closed] Should museums be free?

Yes.
Education through osmosis works a treat.

And stop closing down existing ones, Queens Park in Manchester for example.

Is it a question? They already are aren't they? Happy days. 😀

yes, yes, yes

They are, but moves are afoot to cut the funding that allows them to let you in for free.

Also, foreign visitors to our museums bring in £315 million per year it seems.

So are they free to british residents, but not to visitors? How do they work that then, passports on entry?

I'm in the Yes camp too.

Is there a 'damn right' camp? If so I'm in it.

Museums free to all Stuey, it's extrapolated from the average spend that foreign visitors spend in and around the museums i believe, around £90 per visit it's claimed on TV this morning (how they go about gathering this i don't know)

yes. when i was a kid my parents took us to london to a museum once a year. The cost of trains + entry was pretty substantial (we were pretty poor in the 90s) to the point where it was a once a year special thing.

shame if some kids can't afford to be educated.

Yes, we need to be aware of our culture and heritage - if we know who we are and how we got here, it helps us understand where we're going
But, I've been to a couple of "upgraded" museums recently and can't say I've been too impressed. The buildings are nice, but laid out in a "look at this" fashion with no real attempt to explain the relevance of one exhibit to the next. my local museum used to have a Victorian pub and shop interior - gone to be replaced by a cafe selling pannini and expresso (something like espresso, just not quite right). There seems to be a lack of cohesiveness about displays and they now seem to be places full of pretty things to look at, not places where you can look at things and learn from them. Maybe I'm wrong in thiking there's an element of "dumbing down" and maybe the niceness of the building design will be inspirational, but I just don't see it myself.

I agree some museums seem to have gone down the wrong route, but other modern museums are real eye-openers, the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester is a great example. A museum dedicated to telling the stories of how war affected ordinary people from across the world.

What's wrong with "suggested donations"? I always donate an 'entry fee' when I go to a museum, but I think making it mandatory would be bad.

the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester is a great example.

I was in there a couple of weeks ago. For someone with zero interest in wars, I thought it was really fascinating and very well put together.

Thanks muddydwarf. I was confuddled for a minute there.

I really should go to the Natural History and Science museums again. They are awesome.

Some are free, some are not. If the place is publicly owned then yes. If privately owned then why should they be? How about English Heritage and the equivalents, and National Trust(s) places? Some of their entrance charges are prohibitive if you're not well off.

I've done a lot of work for EH over the last 10yrs as a re-enactor, and i'm always amazed (pleasantly amazed) at how many families will pay an absolute fortune to EH for the pleasure of entering what is basically an old ruin. Mind you, i've no idea of the general numbers that come through the gates when there isn't a show on.

P.S. Our re-enactment group charges EH for our events but that money doesn't reach our pockets, we are a non-profit organisation and all money is put into the group to keep it running. Usually costs me over £100 per weekend to attend an event.

I agree with the above, free entry and a donation box/vase/plinky plonky music sculpture (there's one in Sheffield). Events and special exhibits can be paid entry to keep things fresh like the Tate Modern which also maintains a flow of income.

"moves are afoot" - hardly.

The BBC runs a piece on the 10 year anniversary of free entry and looks at a few European museums for comparison.

It would require changes to legislation to restore charging, I think ?

No. Smaller museums can't compete for the money and end up second-rate in comparison. As an example of museum charging done properly, look at the SS Great Britain in Bristol or the Roman Baths in, uh, Bath.

* Notable exception to all this is the London Transport Museum, which took my £10 and served me with a 4 hour propaganda spiel from Ken Livingstone (mayor at the time).

Donation boxes don't always work that well:

[url= http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Visitors-Bristol-s-M-shed-leave-just-9p/story-13797199-detail/story.html ]/Visitors-Bristol-s-M-shed-leave-just-9p/[/url]

Bolton Museum is most excellent.

As well as the usual stuffed animals, artistic and cultural exhibits, it's got a SNES in a glass case, complete with a copy of 'Mario Kart'.

Makes me feel very old. 😐

Almost as bad as the Welsh Slate Museum in Llanberis:
They've got four miners cottages decorated in various styles - the one depicting the 50's/60's has the same wallpaper, lino and kitchen fittings as the house I grew up in. 🙁

Museums should be free of noise! there should be a great peace and people use to visit at museums to have knowledge or education purpose. They activities would be like as they are in library, not like as they are in Auditorium.

museum dedicated to telling the stories of how

For someone with zero interest in wars, I thought it was really fascinating and very well put together.

National Trust(s) places? Some of their entrance charges are prohibitive if you're not well off.