It was an inspirational move by John Cherry, a former curator at the British Museum and a member of the Friends of Ludlow Museum. It led to an award for £250,000 to catalogue the precious geological collection in our Museum Resource Centre.
After the major banks were discovered to be rigging inter-bank lending rates (Libor) in 2012, regulators imposed fines of more than £450 million. George Osborne decided that this money should neither remain with the regulators or the government’s coffers. It would pay for good causes.
Helped by Philip Dunne, John Cherry and Lottie James – chair of the Friends – pitched a case for a slice of Libor funds to the treasury. It must have been a good pitch because the grant to “Ludlow Museum” was one of just eleven Libor awards announced in Wednesday’s budget.
This is a brilliant result.
This grant doesn’t replace the need for Shropshire Council to properly fund its museum service. But it does give national recognition of the importance of the geological collections in Ludlow.
It also demonstrates what can be achieved if those dedicated to our museums, heritage and cultural sector engage in a bit of inspired thinking. Well done everyone.