Regional Museums Policy for Capital Construction Projects - March 2008

Preamble

Government acknowledges that nationally significant collections are located throughout New Zealand and is concerned that these collections are housed adequately and made accessible to New Zealanders. Government also has an interest in communities having viable museums. These two considerations will lead government to make occasional grants to significant regional museums for capital construction projects. Nonetheless, government reaffirms that the primary responsibility for regional museums rests with the communities in which those museums are located.

The government has set aside a fixed amount each year to support capital developments at regional museums with nationally significant collections. The Ministry for Culture and Heritage will administer the Regional Museums Policy, conduct the assessment of proposals from museums seeking funding, and administer and monitor allocations made. The Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage will decide the allocations to be made each year.

Funding available for allocation through the Policy is limited. Institutions should ensure that projected costs of the project are as accurate as possible as there can be no expectation of further funding from the Policy to accommodate unforeseen or additional costs.

It is useful for a museum to alert government to its interest in making a future application and museums may wish to register expressions of interest as projects develop. This is preferable to submitting a premature application which is not able to meet the criteria adequately and which would not succeed.

Policy

Key Criterion: Collection of National Significance

1. Collections

The significance of an institution's collections is of key importance. Government is concerned that nationally significant material is housed adequately and made accessible to New Zealanders.

To be considered for funding through the Regional Museums Policy, a museum must be able to demonstrate that it holds a nationally significant collection. Collections will need to be of special or outstanding significance to New Zealand and make a substantial contribution to New Zealand 's cultural heritage. As a general rule, this means that only major metropolitan and other significant regional museums and galleries will be eligible for consideration under this Policy. It is important, therefore, that applicants identify and describe their collections and provide a statement about how and why their collections are nationally significant.

Other Criteria

2. Definition of Museum

This Policy does not seek to embrace all the museums and galleries of New Zealand. To be considered, an institution will need to demonstrate that it can satisfy the following definition of a museum:

A museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, and open to the public which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, physical objects as evidence of people and their environment.

Applications for archaeological sites or facilities such as visitor centres, libraries, or science centres, will not be considered for Policy funding.

3. Ownership, Governance and Stakeholders

The institution must demonstrate that any funds allocated will be for public benefit, not private gain, and that the ownership and governance arrangements of the museum ensure this. The institution must demonstrate that it has effective relationships with key stakeholders in its community.

4. Museum Viability

The government will want to be assured that any funding is going to a well-managed institution that will be viable in the long term. Assessment of the operational performance of the museum will include evaluation of its financial performance and position. The institution will have to supply other standard corporate documents such as a strategic plan and collection policy. Evidence will be required to show that any new operating costs arising from the proposed capital project can be adequately defrayed by the museum. Financial projections, based on reasonable assumptions and verifiable as far as possible, should be provided for an operating period of at least three years following completion of the project.

5. Funding Sources

The government will not provide funding from the Policy unless an applicant is able to demonstrate that the project will then be able to proceed without undue delay. It will not, therefore, act as a lever through endorsing a project in order to enable funding to be granted from other sources. The possibility of full funding from other sources, including local authority contributions, corporate sponsorship, public (community) fundraising and Lottery Grants Board allocations, must have been fully investigated before a formal submission is made to government. An institution may wish to register an expression of interest in the Policy before all its fundraising targets have been secured to alert government to its interest in making a future application. This is preferable to submitting a formal application which is not able to meet the criteria adequately and will have to be declined.

6. Regional Impact

Government acknowledges that from time to time a project will have a significant regional impact that warrants special consideration. For example, projects that may be particularly significant in more remote areas may receive consideration because of their special circumstances.

7. Projects

Projects will be basic infrastructural work centred on a museum's collections. Major capital work that is geared towards collection facilities or the construction of exhibition spaces will be considered. The development of exhibitions will not be considered for funding.

8. Heritage Building

If the development involves a heritage building, the heritage significance of the existing structure and the project's likely effect on the existing building will be noted. Advice will be sought from the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. Formal written support from the Historic Places Trust must also be obtained for proposals to redevelop heritage buildings and attached to an institution's application.

9. Urban Design

Projects must be able to demonstrate how the proposed construction aligns with the principles of good urban design as set out in the Ministry for the Environment’s New Zealand Urban Design Protocol. The Protocol was published in March 2005 and can be obtained from the Ministry for the Environment.

10. Resource Consent

In order to give the government confidence that a project will be able to proceed without undue delay, applicants must be able to demonstrate that there is a high likelihood that any resource consent applications required will be secured without difficulty.

11. Retrospective Consideration

The government will not consider requests for projects that have been completed.

12. Nature of Funding Commitment

The government will only commit up to the amount available in each year. While the government may indicate a level of support that anticipates funding being provided over several years, no agreements will be entered into that make such contributions binding.

13. Form of the Grant

A grant will generally take the form of the payment of a capital sum. In some circumstances (particularly where the capital sum sought is large), the government may consider a grant that contributes to the repayment of the principal sum of a loan taken by the museum to fund the project.

14. Level of Government Funding

The amount of the government's grant to fund projects will reflect what is considered to be an appropriate balance between national and local responsibilities and the significance of the collection to which the project relates. The proportion of the cost funded by government will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Projects with greater local significance can expect to receive a lesser proportion than those which may have more national dimension to them.

15. Conditions

Government may place whatever reporting and accountability conditions it determines are appropriate for a grant. The grant expenditure shall be monitored by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. The Ministry will report on the expenditure in its Annual Report to Parliament.

16. Timetable

The Ministry will call for submissions once a year usually in early December. Applications will generally close in late February of the following year, with museums receiving funding being advised at the time of the Budget in May or June. These museums will receive funding in the new financial year which commences in July.

In the first instance, museums will be required to submit adequate information to enable an initial analysis under all of the criteria itemised above. If it is obvious from the outset that museums do not satisfy the key criterion that they must hold a collection of national significance or are clearly unable to meet the other criteria at this time, applications will be declined and applicants promptly notified of the decision. Eligible applications will be evaluated by the Ministry and advanced for Ministerial consideration. The Minister will make the final determination of how the regional museums' allocation will be granted each year.

17. Other information

The Ministry may request further information such as a validation of the costs, current performance indicators and professional assessments.

18. Disclosure and Publication of Information

In advising of a possible application for funding, or submitting any application for funding to the Policy, you and/or the organisation you represent, acknowledge and agree that the Ministry may:

disclose to or obtain from any other government department or agency, private person or organisation, any information about you and/or the organisation you represent and the project; and
publish any information relating to you and/or the organisation you represent and the project;

where the Ministry considers it necessary for the purpose of administering the Policy.

For example, such information may include:

Your name and/or the name of the organisation you represent;
the purpose of the project;
the cost of the project;
the amount of funding that may be sought under the Policy;
the timeframe in which you and/or the organisation are likely to formally apply to the Policy; and
the Minister’s subsequent decision on that application.

When advising of or submitting your application, please notify the Ministry of any objection to the disclosure or publication of any information contained therein, identifying any parts considered confidential and which should be withheld, together with the reasons for withholding them. While taking into account all such objections, the Ministry will exercise its own discretion in this matter, particularly when responding to requests for information on requests under the Official Information Act 1982.”

For enquiries about the Regional Museums Policy contact:

Chief Executive
Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatū Taonga
PO Box 5364 Wellington

Telephone (04) 499-4229
Fax (04) 499-4490
e-mail info@mch.govt.nz

website http://www.mch.govt.nz.