Today (14 January 2010) saw the launch of the Kids In Museums Manifesto (http://www.kidsinmuseums.org.uk/our-manifesto/) which sets out 20 ways to make a visit to a museum family friendly. Amongst other things, they talk about the importance of a friendly welcome, the need to reach out to communities, and that the sector should engage younger people in the design of the services provided.

 
Almost all of the calls in the Manifesto would also benefit older people. In 2008, Help the Aged published Lost in the Money Maze (http://bit.ly/8MhLe0). The report set out a checklist for advice agencies and credit unions to help make themselves more accessible to older people. Whilst this report was aimed at providers of financial advice, the checklist is relevant for other services targeted at older people. Amongst other things the checklist highlighted a similar list to the Kids In Museums Manifesto: including the provision of toilets; the need for a friendly welcome; the design of promotional material; the accessibility of the building; and the importance of outreach.
 
Speaking at the launch Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls MP, emphasized the benefit to all ages, noting that adults would also benefit from the proposals in the Manifesto.
 
One of the most common observations when I’ve spoken to people about older people in museums is “We don’t need to worry. Our museums are full of older people”. But the reality is that (as the DCMS Taking Part Survey shows) there is a big drop off in participation in the cultural and heritage sector when we reach.
 
There is some great practice out there. A Manchester museum, for example, recently decided to introduce portable lightweight chairs which people could carry around and rest on when they needed. They found that older people (and other ages) stayed in the museum for longer. But despite the increasing recognition of the ageing of our society, it seems that the sector has been (in the main) slow to respond.
 
But even those museums who are active in terms of outreach for older people, few would claim to be taking a strategic approach. There must be a bigger role for Government (particularly DCMS) and the Non-Departmental Public Bodies to encourage the cultural sector to take a strategic approach to an ageing society.
 
This isn’t and shouldn’t be about one age group verses another. As the Manifesto shows, some basic initiatives can make museums more accessible for all.
 
To be fair, we have over the years seen significant progress with accessibility of museums. Speaking at the launch, Mariella Frostrup argued that it wasn’t long ago that taking kids to museums was akin to a trip to the dentist (painful).
 
It does however, remain sad that such basic (not even good!) practice is not widespread and that we need Manifestos to push private, public and voluntary sector organisations to deliver even the simplest of improvements to accessibility. Let’s hope that the 2011 Manifesto highlights further progress!

David Sinclair