This pro-forma advocacy strategy can be adapted as little or as much as your require to suit the issues and objectives of your service

Insert the name of your museum or museum service

Advocacy Strategy

2011 - 2016

Executive Summary

This document sets out the Advocacy Strategy for Anywhere Museum. The aim of the Advocacy Strategy is to ensure the museum’s Key Messages are heard across our community and a wider community in the UK.

In common with all museums ourKey Messages are:

  1. This museumempowerspeople through education and inspiration
  2. Collections in our museum help communitiestoregenerate andforge their identity
  3. This museum contributes to the economy

Through this strategy Anywhere Museumwill work to persuade key stakeholders and decision makers of the importance and value of the museum service to the communities of Anywhere County.

What is Advocacy?

Advocacy is typically undertaken by an individual, group or organisation in order to promote either themselves, their ideals or individual projects. Though there are a number of different definitions of advocacy, the one that best fits Anywhere Museum’s objectives was developed by the Museum Association which defines advocacy as follows:

“Advocacy is the process whereby an organisation seeks to influence others in order to gain support for its mission, interests or course of action. In order to achieve this, networks of support are developed and used to lend credibility, wield influence and offer third party endorsement. (Museums Association)

Background

In this section insert some background information and data about Anywhere Museum, its future strategy, vision, aims plans. Use or cut and paste sections from your strategic plan. You might already have done this for your strategic plan. This section should be two or three paragraphs in length and no more than 300 words

Purpose of the Strategy

This strategy is a document that will guide the advocacy work Anywhere Museum undertakes over the next five years. It will shape the development ofour advocacy as Anywhere Museum engages stakeholders and decision makers to get over thekey messages relating to the work we do and the importance of Anywhere Museum to the communities it serves. This strategy will serve as a useful document for museum staff and volunteers at all levels. Advocacy will be understood and undertaken at all levels in Anywhere Museum.The customer care skills of our front line staff will be used to promote the messages as they deal with visitors.All our staff and volunteers will be ambassadors or advocates for our service. This strategy will ensure that all staff are empowered to become advocates and are familiar with the museum’s messages.This strategy will act as a reminder of the need for all to embrace advocacy and help promote our key messages.

Context

The development of this Advocacy Strategy for Anywhere Museum is extremely timely. The Accreditation Scheme for Museums in the UK underwent a major review in 2010 and an updated revised scheme will be introduced in October 2011. The Museum Strategy for Wales supports this and clearly states CyMAL's intent to use Accreditation as the basis for policy making. Community consultation - as required by Accreditation and encouraged by the Museum Strategy for Waleshas direct advocacy benefit for museums. Anywhere Museum is operating and working in a tough economic climateand our resources are shrinking. All sectors are facing uncertainty, which makes it important that Anywhere Museum has a structured response to promote the contribution the service makes to the communities of Anywhere County. The service has to be sensitive to public priorities and show how it contributes to a fair and worthwhile society.

We must be aware that a climate of austerity can frame choices between services such as education and health and sectors such as heritage. We need to think creatively about the delivery of our services. Museums are more than buildings and we must work to demonstrate that museums contribute to those essential services that the community values. Our Advocacy Strategy needs to raise awareness about the breadth of work Anywhere Museumundertakes across Anywhere County. It needs to show that the service fits into the learning, social and healthagendas. It should also highlight the contribution Anywhere Museum makes to the Anywhere County’s economy, particularly through cultural tourism.

Key Messages

This strategy recognises that Anywhere Museumis involved in many different areas. We believe that the Key Messages it needs to convey are:

  1. This museumempowerspeople through education and inspiration
  2. Collections in our museum help communitiesto regenerate andforge their identity
  3. This museum contributes to the economy

These Key Messages are underpinned by a series of statements about what museums actually do. This strategy will ensure that these are communicated as part of promoting the Key Messages.

  1. Museums empower people through education and inspiration

Statement 1 Museums collect and preserve the community’s heritage

Statement 2 Museums are significant centres of formal and informal learning

Statement 3 Museums provide services for children and young people

  1. Collections in Museums help communities regenerate and forge their identity

Statement 4 Museums make an important contribution to local identity, a sense of place and belonging

Statement 5 Museums have accessible, well qualified and committed staff

Statement 6 Museums work in partnerships with numerous organisations

Statement 7 Museums provide services to diverse communities

Statement 8 Museums engage volunteers and many are managed by the third sector

Statement 9 Museums contribute to the quality of life

Statement 10 Museums improve our physical and mental health

Statement 11 Museums encourage the use and growth of the Welsh Language

3Museums contribute to the economy through tourism and regeneration

Statement 12 Museums support tourism and the economic regeneration

Statement 13 Museums offer real value for money

Statement 14 Museums meet high standards and offer a quality service

Target Audiences and possible ways to reach them

It is important that these messages and statements are communicated to a wide range of audiences by Anywhere Museum.

These audiences and the actions below are indicative of what can be included by your museum or museum service. They can be added to or deleted as required.

Target Audiences / Ways of delivering Anywhere Museums’ three key messages
1. Museum Visitors /
  • Website
  • Social Media
  • Leaflets
  • Press stories
  • Educational Material
  • Information from your annual report & Spotlight

2. Education and Training Providers /
  • Lectures
  • Notes
  • Web notes
  • Power point slides
  • Information from your annual report & Spotlight

3. Local Supporters
(Friends, Local History Groups) /
  • Lectures
  • Participation in governance
  • Sponsorship
  • Letter writing
  • Participation in Social Networking

4. Funders /
  • Sponsorship
  • Acknowledgements
  • One to One
  • Applications
  • Invitation to develop projects

5.Media /
  • Press Releases
  • Images
  • Quotes and Comments
  • Good news stories
  • Information from your annual report & Spotlight

6. Politicians, Executive Officers, Trustees. /
  • Evidence to support messages
  • Case studies
  • Role of Heritage in wider society
  • Modern Media
  • Briefing Note
  • One to One
  • Information from our annual report

7. General /
  • Email Signature

Actions

  1. Anywhere Museum will:
  2. Put the Key Messages on our website.
  3. Put positive museum statistics on our website.
  4. Tweet KeyMessages
  5. Tweet positive museum statistics
  6. Include Key Messages and positive museum statistics on printed media
  7. Include Key Messages and positive museum statistics as notes for editors on press releases
  8. Include Key Messages and positive museum statistics in information for schools.
  1. Anywhere Museum will provide key museum information relating to education to:
  • Students
  • Education providers
  • Lecturers
  1. Anywhere Museum will encourage local supporters to use the Key Messages
  1. Anywhere Museum will use KeyMessages in grant applications.
  1. Anywhere Museum will :
  • Place key messages on every press release
  • Build up a resource of good news/events/successes
  1. Anywhere Museum will:
  • Collect data to enforce Key Messages
  • Make information about the museum easily available
  • Collect visual evidence
  • Meet with politicians (if possible)
  1. Anywhere Museumwill insert positive museum statistics and messages on the end of email signatures from staff.

Activities/Outcomes

Anywhere Museum to indentify some key Activities/outcomes for the strategy, such as a good news story with messages once a month, presentations at training events for teachers and other user groups, development of web sites and the use of new media, staff training, messages on e mail signatures, publication of key statistics etc. You can add to or delete from this list to suit your requirements.

Evaluation and Monitoring

Anywhere Museum to identify some key outcomes for use in monitoring and evaluating the success of the strategy. These could include;-

  • Attendance of decision makers at events
  • Interest from decision makers
  • Evidence that the value of Anywhere Museum has been recognised within relevant strategies, policies of governing organisation or funders.

This proforma was developed by the Federation of Museums and ArtGalleries of Wales