Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum awarded £114,000 boost from National Renewal Fund

Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM) has secured £114,202 in government funding to help strengthen its long-term sustainability and support its ongoing work connecting the community with culture, history, and the natural world.

The grant comes from the Government’s Museum Renewal Fund, a national initiative aimed at supporting the development and resilience of museums across the UK. The funding will help RAMM improve its income-generating activities including its shop, café and online retail offer, ensuring the museum can continue to thrive despite the financial pressures currently facing many cultural organisations.

RAMM, operated by Exeter City Council, plays a vital role in the life of the city. As well as caring for and displaying Exeter’s rich collections, it serves as a hub for creativity and community engagement, hosting free and low-cost events, supporting artists, running educational programmes for schools, and offering opportunities for local groups to engage with heritage and art.

Cllr Bob Foale, Exeter’s Lead Councillor for Arts, Culture & Tourism, said: “This grant is a testament to the value of civic museums and the work RAMM does to connect people with culture, history, and ideas.

“While it is a welcome boost that will help us build resilience and continue serving our audiences in meaningful ways, we must acknowledge that civic museums across the country are still facing significant challenges. Continued investment and advocacy are essential to ensure our sector thrives.”

The funding comes at a crucial time for local authorities across the country, many of which are grappling with severe financial pressures. Exeter City Council says it remains committed to supporting RAMM but would welcome a longer-term funding solution for civic museums.

Jon Finch, Chair of the English Civic Museums Network, which campaigned for the creation of the Museum Renewal Fund, highlighted the sector’s economic as well as cultural importance:

“In addition to their cultural and social value, museums play a vital role in the economy. As a sector, with many institutions that are civic in nature, museums have been shown to deliver over £1.45 billion of economic output locally, regionally and nationally. This equates to approximately £3 of economic return for every £1 of public sector investment.”

RAMM has expressed gratitude to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and Arts Council England for their ongoing support, describing the funding as a vital contribution to the museum’s future stability and community work.

Founded in 1868, RAMM is widely regarded as one of the UK’s leading regional museums. It welcomes around 250,000 visitors a year, and its World Cultures and Natural Sciences collections are designated as being of national and international importance. The museum was named Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2012 for its innovative displays, which were praised by Lord Chris Smith as “some of the most intelligently considered displays on view in any museum in the UK”.

RAMM continues to deliver a wide-ranging programme of exhibitions, events and creative commissions, inspiring curiosity and engagement among visitors of all ages.

The Museum Renewal Fund, launched in April 2025 by DCMS and Arts Council England, supports local authority-linked museums to address operational challenges, boost sustainability, and protect public access to collections. RAMM’s award is one of 75 grants made across England, designed to help cultural institutions build more resilient futures.

For more information about RAMM and its upcoming programmes, visit rammuseum.org.uk