Tuesday 20th July 2010
A grant of £153,800 has been awarded to West Dunbartonshire Council, as lead partner with The Scottish Maritime Museum and Clydebank Rebuilt’s Titan Crane, to deliver a training programme designed to give participants the skills essential for the daily operation of museum and heritage attractions.
Gill Graham, West Dunbartonshire Council’s Section Head for Culture explained:
“We are absolutely delighted to have been selected to receive this National Funding Award. We have identified a skills shortage arts and heritage, and recognise that there are few opportunities for people to receive formal training. Through this project and working with our partner museums and heritage venues we aim to a valuable opportunity to provide for nine ‘apprenticeships’ in order to develop new skills and improve employability.”
Over a period of five years the project will offer nine ‘apprentices’ each a twelve month placement.
Placements will start with a general introduction to museum skills followed by the opportunity to specialise in areas such as education, volunteer management, collection care and visitor services.
The project will promote these opportunities to the financially disadvantaged and those without higher education qualifications. In addition four of the nine placements will be offered to disabled candidates.
Dame Jenny Abramsky, Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund, said:
“When the recession kicked-in last year we thought very hard about how the Heritage Lottery Fund could make a difference to people’s lives at a time of real need. The answer was an innovative and ambitious programme focusing on equipping people with practical skills to help them secure future employment.
“We have been astounded by the response which clearly shows a great hunger for skills training within our sector. We’re delighted to be supporting seven projects – from learning how to laser scan a building to traditional woodworking crafts – and we know that the range of placements on offer will attract people who might not previously have considered working in heritage.”
Launched in July 2009, Skills for the Future is a one-off HLF programme supporting organisations across the UK to create new training places. Grants range from £100,000 to £1million for a number of traineeships over a period of up to five years with an emphasis on high-quality work-based training.
Using money raised through the National Lottery, the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) sustainsand transforms a wide range of heritage for present and future generations to take part in, learn from and enjoy. From museums, parks and historic places to archaeology, natural environment and cultural traditions, and invest in every part of Scotland’s diverse heritage.
To date, HLF has invested over £500million in Scotland. www.hlf.org.uk
