Horniman Public Museum and Public Park Trust
Board of Trustees – Vacancy 2017
The organisation
Background
The Foundation which Frederick Horniman set up in 1901 has benefited many millions of visitors. The Trustees and management of the Horniman want to ensure that the excellent Museum and Gardens which have grown from his original gift continues to provide amazing, inspiring and enlightening encounters for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds.
At the heart of Frederick Horniman’s gift sit the founding collections, the original building and the Gardens given to ‘the people in perpetuity’ for their ‘recreation, instruction and enjoyment’. This generous gift has grown significantly in both quality and quantity over the last hundred years.
Our collections are nationally and internationally important, large and diverse, with the majority located in our Study Collections Centre in Greenwich. Our Ethnographic collections are amongst the most important in the UK; our Musical Instrument collections are the most diverse in the UK and now include an outstanding complementary collection of instruments on long term loan from the Victoria and Albert Museum. These ‘Designated’ collections, combined with our spectacular Natural History specimens, our Aquarium and our 16.5 acres of award winning Gardens combine to create a unique opportunity to understand the world around us.
A Museum and Gardens united
Our Gardens redevelopment programme completed in 2012 allows us to offer a unique range of experiences, linking the outdoor and indoor, our living collections and our objects and specimens. As our sites, both real and virtual, become more integrated and richer in their content and quality, the value we can bring to the public realm continues to increase.
Education at the heart of the community
We want as many people as possible to enjoy the Museum and Gardens and had c. 915,000visitors in 2016/17. Improved transport networks make accessing the Horniman from all parts of London and beyond ever easier.
The Horniman has been known for the depth of its community engagement and the quality of its educational work since the 1960s and continues to be at the cutting edge of developments both in formal learning and community engagement.
The Horniman’s formal education programmes support schools at primary and secondary level with their curriculum work. Our special learning projects, adult courses and events and activities enrich the lives of many, including some of the most vulnerable in our community. As the learning landscape continues to change, the Horniman will work with teachers and advisers to create new programmes which respond to user demand.
A detailed account of the work the Horniman does is described every year in an Annual Report published on the website at
Vision
To use the Horniman’s worldwide collections and the Gardens to encourage a wider appreciation of the World, its peoples and their cultures, and its environments.
Values
The Horniman Museum and Gardens has certain core values:
- Respect for the World’s diverse cultures, environments and resources
- Valuing difference by working toward a diverse workforce and audience
- Enrichment through learning and understanding
- Enjoyment for our visitors
- Excellence in the research, interpretation and care of our collections
- Stewardship of our collections, Gardens and historic buildings
- Sharing and developing our expertise
- Efficiency and effectiveness in the waywe work
Governance and funding
The Horniman is an independent charitable companylimited by guarantee, incorporated in December 1989 (and registered as a charity in February 1990) and subject to the supervision of the Charity Commission.
Unlike many museums and galleries, the Horniman owns its assets itself – both its premises and collections – holding them either in trust for the public under the terms of the original foundation of 1901 or as part of its charitable corporate assets.
The dual nature of the Horniman is also unusual: it is not only a public museum but also a public park ‘dedicated to the recreation of the public’.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
The Horniman’s core funding is provided by grant-in-aid from the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS).
The Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) settlement in November 2015 confirmed a flat cash settlement for 2016-19based on 2015’s settlement. This will allow the Trust to consolidate its success in building income and offer a stable foundation from which to grow further.
Our priorities set by DCMS include protecting our world-class collections and front line services; maintaining free entry to the permanent collections; continuing to pursue commercial and philanthropic approaches to generating revenue; achieving efficiencies of 1% a year; taking a strategic approach to partnership working across the UK and internationally and prioritising access for disadvantaged young people and communities.
Arts Council England (ACE)
The Hornimanhas been a Major partner museum since 2012.Our funding allocation providesan annual grant of £946,678 up to 21/22 to deliver an ambitious programme. One of the headline objectives is developing the Horniman as a creative hub for excellence in curatorial, artistic and participatory practice. This and our broader work will help us demonstrate the creative case for diversity. We will be increasing the depth and breadth of audience engagement, and expanding the Trust’s highly successful work with children and young people.
The Horniman also plays its part in contributing to the development of the wider museum sector, supporting colleagues with loans and subject specialist expertise.
Self generated income
The Trust has been engaged in a long term change programme to reduce costs, to enable us to be more enterprising, and to allow us to grow and diversify our sources of income. The Trust continues to progress all these areas and has set targets for increasing income.
The commercial activities of the Horniman are overseen by its trading subsidiary Horniman Museum Enterprises (HME), with the main income streams currently being from the café, gift shop and venue hire.
The Horniman Museum and Gardens will be looking to its partners, its community and new and existing funders to help support and develop the Horniman and the wonderful assets it holds.
The duty & role of the Board of Trustees
The Trust has 3 key objectives:
- To use the collections and the Gardens to stimulate curiosity and wonder, promoting opportunities for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to participate in and enjoy exhibitions, educational programmes, activities and events - both face to face and online.
- To safeguard and develop the collections so that they can be made as accessible as possible now and in the future.
- To effectively manage resources and become more financially resilient so that we can continue to develop and share the Horniman’s collections, estate and expertise for the widest possible public benefit
Trustees also have responsibilities as Directors of the Company.
The main functions of the Board of Trustees of the Horniman are to:
- Set the overall strategic aims and objectives of the Trust;
- Act as an advocate and ambassador for the Horniman to a wide range of stakeholders;
- Oversee the development of the collections and gardens through acquisition, fieldwork and research;
- Ensure that the collections and knowledge about them are safeguarded, both now and for the future, through effective care, management and documentation;
- Ensure the provision of a high quality, user-friendly service, centred on the collections and gardens;
- Ensure that an integrated interpretation of the collections and gardens is provided for the education, enjoyment and recreation of visitors and users;
- Be responsible for the proper performance of the Trust and its stewardship of public funds, and to monitor performance;
- Support the Horniman in its efforts to secure funding for revenue and capital needs;
The Trustees provide vision, direction, control and accountability in fulfilling the Horniman’s public purpose
Trustee Person Specification
Candidates will ideally bring all or most of the following qualities:
- An understanding of and enthusiasm for the Horniman’s work, along with a commitment to its objectives and values;
- A proven ability to work on a board, and to think and work strategically;
- An understanding of the wider public environment in which the Horniman operates;
- An understanding of the needs of a diverse audience;
- Good communications skills and a proven ability to work constructively with the other Trustees and wider stakeholders;
- An understanding of the need to build self-generated income and a willingness and ability to support fundraising initiatives.
The Board is currently looking for a potential trustee with senior strategic leadership experience in property development and project management in the built environment and applicants with this background will be preferred.
Terms of appointment
Trustees are required to attend four Board meetings per year and other sub-committee meetingsas may be agreed. Some additional time will be required to study papers, attend events at the Horniman and other representational engagements. The likely total time commitment is c.6-8 days per annum for the majority of Trustees, but this would be greater for and those trustees involved in subcommittees or other projects.
Board meetings are held in London, normally at the Horniman Museum and Gardens.
The posts are unpaid, but travel expenses can be claimed.
The Horniman supports equal opportunities and applications are particularly welcomed from people from ethnic minority backgrounds and those with disabilities.
Trustees will be appointed for a term of four years.
Interviewdate to be confirmed.