St Edmundsbury has agreed to continue improving its overall heritage services throughout the borough after a steering group has been unable to provide a viable financial plan to keep the Manor House building open as a museum.
Cllr Paul Farmer, Cabinet member responsible for arts and culture, said:
"We've worked in partnership with the group for several months to try and help them come up with a business plan that's viable. In that time the steering group has put forward five different sets of figures, with significant variations between them in areas such as income generation. What they all have in common is a large gap in the finances and they haven't told us how they expect to bridge that gap - it is certainly not something I believe the Council Tax payer should fill. When St Edmundsbury took the decision last December to close the Manor House, after an extensive five-month review which included input from experienced independent consultants, it was made clear right from the start that we wanted to improve our services while also saving money for our Council Tax payers. Now it's time to move forward and put into place the exciting proposals we have for our heritage services which will help us to reach much wider audiences."
The group's latest figures show that a subsidy would be needed of anything up to £250,000 in the next three years (which would be equivalent to £6.86 for a Band D household). Heritage services proposals approved by the council last year highlight more than £200,000 of savings for Council Tax Payers, plus improved facilities at West Stow, including a storage and study centre, changes to Moyse's Hall Museum and more outreach work - taking the work of museums out into the community.
ENDS
ISSUED BY MARIANNE HULLAND, COMMUNICATIONS UNIT, ST EDMUNDSBURY BOROUGH COUNCIL. Tel 01284 757034. marianne.hulland@stedsbc.gov.uk
