Concerns have been raised about the future of Nuneaton’s Museum and Art Gallery. This week, the venue is being shut early on several days.
There is a sign on the door of the venue that says that staff shortages mean that it will close at 1pm, both yesterday, today (April 11) and tomorrow (April 12). This information has also been shared widely on social media.
Plans to extend Nuneaton’s Museum have been put on hold. However, it is having some works carried out, including a new lift and new flooring, but the cut in opening times, and potential lack of staff, have left some concerns.
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Michele Kondakor asked, at a cabinet meeting at the Town Hall, about what was happening at the Riversley Park-based council run venue. “Our lovely museum and art gallery is closed most of the time,” she said.
“This week I saw a sign about it being closed due to staff shortages. If you are encouraging arts, it needs to be permanent things as well.”
She also explained that Nuneaton Festival of Arts is also having to hold part of its exhibition in neighbouring Hinckley because of works at the museum. “The festival of arts is holding its exhibition in Hinckley as it could not find anywhere here and that is such a crying shame,” she said.
Council leader Kris Wilson said: “The museum is still open. We have to cut out coat according to our cloth and we still have to keep our frontline statutory services going and we make no apologies for that as a leadership team at the council.
“We have to balance the books and stave off doing what Birmingham have done – ending up going bankrupt. We will not do that as an administration.
“But what we are doing is where we can connect people through alternative sources of provision.” The discussion came during a debate about arts in Nuneaton and Bedworth and the ongoing ‘Creative Explorers’ scheme.
It came after Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council was the only council in the West Midlands to be given £750,000 from the Arts Council England to set up a project to boost access to the arts in the borough. This has seen the creation of the unique pop-up shop ‘Grit Arts Central’ in Nuneaton town centre, which has been hosting events across the two towns.
As part of the 21-month-long project, there will be a major arts event held in the borough this summer. But details, such as what will happen, when and where, have yet to be revealed.
Both Cllr Wilson and Michele Kondakor are standing in the forthcoming local elections. The full details of all of the candidates can be found here.