The City Council is consulting on closure of the Canterbury Heritage Museum.
Those named below call on the City Council NOT to close the Museum and deny access to a comprehensive collection telling the story of Canterbury’s heritage, but to work with a consortium of archaeologists, historians, societies, universities, arts organisations, community groups, schools and volunteers, to renew and re-present the buildings and collections for the 21st century.
Our ambition will be to transform the building into a dynamic hub to explore and share new insights into the city for people who live, work or study in Canterbury or who come as visitors.
The first aim of our new consortium of supporters will be to work with Canterbury City Council on a plan to save the Museum in partnership. If that fails, we propose to form a new Trust to apply to take over operational management of the Museum, its collections and heritage buildings in Stour Street.
We will then seek to raise funds to redisplay the buildings and collections and promote them. We will also seek to provide programmes of learning and creative engagement for local people and visitors to experience and enjoy the whole of the city’s story set in one of Canterbury’s most inspiring and complete medieval buildings.
We call on the City Council to work with the consortium to achieve these objectives.
List of supporting institutions:
- Canterbury Archaeological Trust
- Friends of Canterbury Archaeological Trust
- Canterbury Christ Church University
- Centre for Kent History and Heritage, Canterbury Christchurch University
- Centre for Heritage (University of Kent)
- Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (University of Kent)
- The Canterbury Society
- Kent Archaeological Society
- Canterbury Heritage Design Forum
- Canterbury branch of the Historical Association
- Department of Classical & Archaeological Studies (University of Kent)
- Canterbury Tourist Guides
- The Oaten Hill and South Canterbury Association Local History Group
- Canterbury Historical and Archaeological Society
- Canterbury Commemoration Society
- Friends of Canterbury Museums
- Kent Family History Society
- www.historiccanterbury.com
- Commitee Members St Mildred's Area Community Society
If you support this initiative sign here
Updates
Reached 1,000 supporters
February 20, 2017
February 19, 2017
The City Council thinks they can quietly shutter our history without a fight. We are closing in on one thousand signatures and I need you to hit every social media channel you have to push us over that mark today. If we reach this milestone it becomes impossible for them to ignore the public demand to keep these doors open.
February 18, 2017
The City Council thinks they can just sweep our history under the rug and lock the doors on Stour Street. This massive surge of support proves they are dead wrong and we are not going anywhere.
Reached 100 supporters
February 16, 2017
February 16, 2017
The City Council thinks they can quietly dismantle our history while we watch from the sidelines. We are almost at one hundred signatures and I need you to drag this campaign onto every feed you have so they stop ignoring us.
674 Comments
It is a short-sighted saving to cut museums. Canterbury is famous for its heritage - and not only the cathedral - and Historic England calculates the Gross Value Added of heritage to be £21.7bn, and heritage-based tourism to be worth £18.4bn per annum.
Over the last 15 years we have used the museum to introduce youngsters and their families to Kent history . The Benney does not meet those requirements having tried it - it is too geared to art and the galleries do not provide the same learning experience .
A city of the historical importance of Canterbury cannot lose its local history museum - the Poor Priest'sHospital is also the ideal setting for this collection. Other options must be explored - Faversham saved Fleur de Lis we need to explore similar solutions.
This is a nationally important museum with amazing artefacts from Kent's Saxon and later mediaeval history AND artwork and models from Rupert the Bear and the unrivalled creations of Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin: Noggin the Nog, the Clangers, Bagpuss etc.
I would live yo help. I'm an architect and have a keen interest in museums and amusements. I have BIG ideas for the museum that would benefit it financially. Closing it now is short sighted, discussing great ideas on how to be better is long term
This was a wonderful collection and museum..what has happened to this collection since then...it should belong to the city residents of Canterbury yam protected and saved...Where is it now...
A Doverian, now I living in the town where the 'Fair Maid of Kent' is buried (under a carpark it's thought - it's a Plantagenet thing!). Strange that the local council here. having closed our museum, is now considering the future of the discovery centre that replaced it. What price our heritage.
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The City Council is consulting on closure of the Canterbury Heritage Museum.
Those named below call on the City Council NOT to close the Museum and deny access to a comprehensive collection telling the story of Canterbury’s heritage, but to work with a consortium of archaeologists, historians, societies, universities, arts organisations, community groups, schools and volunteers, to renew and re-present the buildings and collections for the 21st century.
Our ambition will be to transform the building into a dynamic hub to explore and share new insights into the city for people who live, work or study in Canterbury or who come as visitors.
The first aim of our new consortium of supporters will be to work with Canterbury City Council on a plan to save the Museum in partnership. If that fails, we propose to form a new Trust to apply to take over operational management of the Museum, its collections and heritage buildings in Stour Street.
We will then seek to raise funds to redisplay the buildings and collections and promote them. We will also seek to provide programmes of learning and creative engagement for local people and visitors to experience and enjoy the whole of the city’s story set in one of Canterbury’s most inspiring and complete medieval buildings.
We call on the City Council to work with the consortium to achieve these objectives.
List of supporting institutions:
- Canterbury Archaeological Trust
- Friends of Canterbury Archaeological Trust
- Canterbury Christ Church University
- Centre for Kent History and Heritage, Canterbury Christchurch University
- Centre for Heritage (University of Kent)
- Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (University of Kent)
- The Canterbury Society
- Kent Archaeological Society
- Canterbury Heritage Design Forum
- Canterbury branch of the Historical Association
- Department of Classical & Archaeological Studies (University of Kent)
- Canterbury Tourist Guides
- The Oaten Hill and South Canterbury Association Local History Group
- Canterbury Historical and Archaeological Society
- Canterbury Commemoration Society
- Friends of Canterbury Museums
- Kent Family History Society
- www.historiccanterbury.com
- Commitee Members St Mildred's Area Community Society
If you support this initiative sign here
Updates
Reached 1,000 supporters
February 20, 2017
February 19, 2017
The City Council thinks they can quietly shutter our history without a fight. We are closing in on one thousand signatures and I need you to hit every social media channel you have to push us over that mark today. If we reach this milestone it becomes impossible for them to ignore the public demand to keep these doors open.
February 18, 2017
The City Council thinks they can just sweep our history under the rug and lock the doors on Stour Street. This massive surge of support proves they are dead wrong and we are not going anywhere.
Reached 100 supporters
February 16, 2017
February 16, 2017
The City Council thinks they can quietly dismantle our history while we watch from the sidelines. We are almost at one hundred signatures and I need you to drag this campaign onto every feed you have so they stop ignoring us.
674 Comments
The Canterbury Heritage Museum provides an invaluable source of knowledge about Canterbury's history. My own children and friend's children learnt about history through the exhibitions and fun activities by dressing up and the interactive games.
It is a short-sighted saving to cut museums. Canterbury is famous for its heritage - and not only the cathedral - and Historic England calculates the Gross Value Added of heritage to be £21.7bn, and heritage-based tourism to be worth £18.4bn per annum.
Over the last 15 years we have used the museum to introduce youngsters and their families to Kent history . The Benney does not meet those requirements having tried it - it is too geared to art and the galleries do not provide the same learning experience .
A city of the historical importance of Canterbury cannot lose its local history museum - the Poor Priest'sHospital is also the ideal setting for this collection. Other options must be explored - Faversham saved Fleur de Lis we need to explore similar solutions.
This is a nationally important museum with amazing artefacts from Kent's Saxon and later mediaeval history AND artwork and models from Rupert the Bear and the unrivalled creations of Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin: Noggin the Nog, the Clangers, Bagpuss etc.
I would live yo help. I'm an architect and have a keen interest in museums and amusements. I have BIG ideas for the museum that would benefit it financially. Closing it now is short sighted, discussing great ideas on how to be better is long term
This was a wonderful collection and museum..what has happened to this collection since then...it should belong to the city residents of Canterbury yam protected and saved...Where is it now...
A Doverian, now I living in the town where the 'Fair Maid of Kent' is buried (under a carpark it's thought - it's a Plantagenet thing!). Strange that the local council here. having closed our museum, is now considering the future of the discovery centre that replaced it. What price our heritage.
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The Canterbury Heritage Museum provides an invaluable source of knowledge about Canterbury's history. My own children and friend's children learnt about history through the exhibitions and fun activities by dressing up and the interactive games.