Collections

Manchester Museum fully supports the aims of the Museums Association’s Smarter Loans Initiative

We have an obligation to share our collections, and believe that lending and borrowing is part of our core activity.

Loans benefit both lenders and borrowers. They enable our collections to reach new audiences, inspire learning and enhance enjoyment. The Museum is committed to making its collection widely available to museums and galleries around the world, supporting important exhibitions and bringing works from our collection to new audiences.

Our collections are a valuable public resource, reflecting the generosity of past and current donors and public investment in their continued care and development.  Borrowing and lending are the lifeblood of our exhibition and outreach programmes, offering new perspectives on our world and its cultures, and the sharing of our collections contributes to their interpretation and increases the benefit they can provide for the public.

Manchester Museum captures and uses new collections research, knowledge and interpretation generated through loans and associated materials to continually reflect on, evaluate and interpret its collections for future generations.

How we support loan requests

We have a pragmatic and flexible approach to lending – ensuring that our collections are made available to as wide a variety of audiences as possible, whilst maintaining appropriate standards of collection care and safeguarding our collections for future generations of users.

We have a commitment to supporting local organisations and, wherever possible, will respond swiftly and flexibly to requests.

Whilst we prioritise requests from museums and galleries, we will also consider requests from a wider range of institutions that provide public access and can meet the required standards of collection care, security and ethical practice.

We believe that the best way forward is for clear lines of communication, transparency from the start of the loans process and sharing of information.

Manchester Museum uses the United Kingdom Registrars’ Group Facilities Report to assess the practicalities involved in making loans. This is intended to help both borrowers and lenders work together to define appropriate and acceptable standards based on the needs of the object, highlight potential problems and help us reach agreement on how these can be resolved.

Manchester Museum is committed to sustainable practices and will engage with borrowers to ensure transport, packaging, couriers and other areas of the loan process support these aims.