Campaigners fighting against Oxford’s museum entry charge have promised to monitor developments closely following an announcement about the recently-implemented admission fee.
At the Oxford City Council gathering on Monday, 23 March, council leader Susan Brown stated that officials would revisit options for providing free access to the Museum of Oxford at the upcoming cabinet session on 15 April.
Responding to this, the Save Our Museum group confirmed it would maintain vigilance to ensure this review takes place properly.
Members of the public have been required to pay four pounds to enter the St Aldate’s venue since the end of January, except for those qualifying for discounted or complimentary access.
The council explained that the charge was introduced due to falling visitor numbers and because continued financial support for the attraction was no longer sustainable.
Meanwhile, a petition opposing the decision has collected roughly two thousand signatures from Oxford residents and was discussed at the recent full council gathering.
Previously, demonstrators had displayed banners outside Oxford Town Hall with messages including knowledge is priceless and free MOX.
The Save Our Museum group assembled outside Oxford Town Hall to demonstrate against the admission charge.
Petition creator Avril Alexander told councillors in her address that she feared the charge endangered the museum’s future sustainability, as it would struggle to compete with larger university-operated galleries.
She noted that the decision had been made in a procedurally questionable manner, having not received approval from the full council, and that the museum had been undermined by flawed and inconsistent figures provided by the council.
Alexander expressed that councillors should acknowledge the Museum of Oxford as a valuable civic asset to be proud of, and called for collaborative efforts with dedicated museum professionals and the Museum Development Trust to explore creative funding strategies instead of adopting what she described as a destructive approach.
Cabinet member for planning and culture Alex Hollingsworth was absent from the proceedings, leaving council leader Susan Brown to respond.
The Labour representative acknowledged Alexander’s concerns, particularly regarding equitable access, transparency and the museum’s long-term preservation.
On the matter of visitor figures, she stated she shared the frustration caused by information having been presented in varying formats on different occasions.
Brown attributed the discrepancies to complex historical accounting methods producing irregularities and variations between day-to-day budget management by staff and annual financial reports.
She pledged that officials would continue assessing the effects of charging as financial data and visitor feedback are gathered over the coming months.
The council leader also amended the motion following the public petition, resulting in agreement to recommend to cabinet that additional options for providing free access to the museum for local residents be investigated.
This passed with only a small number of abstentions, and the Save Our Museum group described the level of backing as promising.
A representative stated that campaigners would maintain close observation of the cabinet gathering to assess how the recommendation is implemented, and would continue liaising with all councillors and parties who have expressed desire to preserve free access, ensuring they translate their statements into concrete actions.