Museum Networks

Museum Development Officer (MDO) training and advice programme

MDOs and specialists from the Museum of London often deliver skills sessions directly within our training programmes. Events are sometimes held at museum sites and generally structured to enable museum workers to share their insights and cutting edge work. Within our programme of one-to-one advice we can sometimes arrange for museum workers to observe relevant sessions, or negotiate other kinds of specific support from within the Museum of London or elsewhere.

Area networks

London Museums Group (LMG) is an organisation representing museum workers in London. You can keep up to date with their activities by visiting their web site.

Local networks

The MDO team also works with a range of sub-regional networks to share information and help set up skills sharing sessions at their request. Please contact the networks directly for dates of their upcoming meetings:

• West London Museums Group - interim contact: [email protected]
• North & East London Museums Group - contact: [email protected]
• South & East London Museums Group – contact: [email protected]
• Central London Historic Collections Network - contact: [email protected]

Subject networks

The MDO team exchanges information and skills within and between subject-based networks, for instance:

• London Museums of Health and Medicine Chair: [email protected]
• London Military Museum Network Chair: is currently vacant, so contact [email protected] for now, who will let you know once a new contact is in place.
• Industrial Heritage Network London: [email protected]
• The national Subject specialist networks, many of whose members are located in London. You can find further information on these subject specialist networks and a list of contacts on the Arts Council England’s website here.

Practitioner networks

The MDO team are active in sourcing speakers and generally supporting the work of a number of professional groups covering specific areas of museum practice. This list includes some of them. Upcoming meeting dates are available from the contacts provided:

• Early Years network - contact: [email protected]
• Families in Museums Network - contact: [email protected]
• Group for Education in Museums (GEM) London: [email protected]
• London Heritage Volunteer Management Network (LHVMN) - contact: [email protected]
• London museums capital projects group – contact: [email protected]
• Young People’s Programmes Managers network - contact: [email protected]
• Secondary Learning network (PDF 676kb, opens in new tab) - contact: [email protected]

Mentoring and peer support

Museum Development Officers can offer general advice within their role, but they also help to arrange more targeted mentor and peer support.

The Survive and Thrive programme relies on museum peers to support the self-assessment and review exercises which are critical to the programme’s success. We are always keen to hear from potential volunteer peers. The support of Museum Mentors is critical in enabling museums without professional staff to achieve Museum Accreditation. MDOs have a key role in sourcing Museum Mentors for those museums that need them. For more information visit the Museum Mentor section of the Arts Council website.