Scotland's Museums and Galleries Strategy Symposium 2025 - Auditorium Session 1

Panel discussion: The current and future skills landscape
This panel will explore how Historic Environment Scotland, National Museums Scotland, and Museums Galleries Scotland support training and development across the culture sector. Speakers will highlight areas including access to training, workforce confidence, and the importance of understanding and meeting the sector’s needs.

1. Skills & Confidence | Session 1 | 12:30pm – 1:15pm Panel discussion: The current and future skills landscape Chair: John Campbell Senior Workforce and Partnerships Manager, Museums Galleries Scotland Speakers: Ailsa Macfarlane Head of National & International Partnerships, National Museums Scotland Ashley Wakenshaw (she/her) Head of Workforce and Resilience, Museums Galleries Scotland | | | Catherine Cartmell (she/her) Skills Investment Plan Manager, Historic Environment Scotland | #StrategySymposium2025

2. Museums Galleries Scotland Skills & Confidence – The current and future landscape

3. National Strategy 2023 - 2030 Workforce strand comprises: Workforce Diversity Skills & Confidence Fair Work Delivered through Collaboration

4. MGS workforce development Accredited Learning Future Workforce Improve sector skills and confidence Provide opportunities for museums to share their knowledge and practice Respond to identified skills needs Support Fair Work practices

5. Our skills and resources team John Campbell Senior Workforce and Partnerships Manger Ashley Wakenshaw Head of Workforce and Resilience Markus Offer Workforce and Partnerships Manager Gabi Gillott Project Officer – Workforce for the Future Frankie Bradley Skills Development Officer Karen Jamieson Workplace Assessor Natalie Milor Skills Development Manager Lucy Evans Corporate Officer

6. MGS Offer 2024-25 Supported 25 aspiring leaders Workforce for the Future Programming – 19 projects Delivered Marseum Learning Resource in schools Delivered 17 Modern Apprenticeships Hosted 2 Foundation Apprentices 2 new Workplace Assessors & 1 new Workplace Internal Verifier Hosted 3 Employability Lunch and Learns Hosted Fair Work lunch & learn plus 10 FW surgeries 48 1-2-1 tailored employability sessions Recruitment support and free job advertising Created Business Support online learning modules

7. Challenges Capacity for learning Resource Geography Specialist/curatorial skills

8. What’s next? Expanding our MA offer to new frameworks Supporting leadership, governance and skills for resilience Expanding on the engagement with Marseum Further delivery of employability support sessions Learning opportunities in line with MGS Programmes – including Delivering Change and Intangible Cultural Heritage Building further understanding of skills needs​

9. “A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to the public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.” ICOM 2022

10. Skills needs Digital Skills:  IT, digital curation, marketing, conservation, and new technologies. Environmental Sustainability:  Skills to support sustainability. Transferable Skills:  Business management, crisis management, legal understanding, PR, evaluation, customer care, income generation and project management. Volunteer Support:  Need for accessible skills development for volunteers Core Museum Skills : design principles, understanding audiences and collections care

11. You said… • Identify a system for skills and knowledge sharing to address workforce issues including succession planning. • Develop a more inclusive culture and address barriers that exclude • Create the environment for more cross-industry collaboration • Create a strategic framework for training provision • Fostering digital literacy and digital innovation

12. …We are doing Developing a heritage skills at risk list Providing grant funding for skills related projects Creating pathways Fostering digital literacy and innovation Developing and delivering CPD Providing facilities for training

13. National Museums Scotland: Supporting skills and confidence

14. National & International Partnerships Team Ailsa Macfarlane Head of National & International Partnerships Hazel Williamson National Programmes Manager (National Fund for Acquisitions) Elena Trimarchi National & International Projects Coordinator Katherine Wynn Ellie McCartney National Programmes Manager Department Administrator (Sector Support)

15. National Strategy 2023-27 Share Scotland’s collections National Loans Programme Learning and engagement activities across Scotland, including Maths Week Scotland Support our sector National Fund for Acquisitions Strategic partnerships and skills and capacity building projects National Training & Advice Programme

16. National Training Programme 2023 to 2024 16 training and knowledge sharing events for Scotland’s museum sector 234 learning experiences provided 73 museums across Scotland engaged 26,284 views of our online training and guidance resources for museums

17. National Training Programme Supporting collections skills

18. National & International Partnerships Contact us: Ailsa Macfarlane [email protected] Katherine Wynn [email protected] [email protected] Scan to sign up to our newsletter

19. Skills & Confidence | Session 1 | 12:30pm – 1:15pm Panel discussion: The current and future skills landscape Chair: John Campbell Senior Workforce and Partnerships Manager, Museums Galleries Scotland Speakers: Ailsa Macfarlane Head of National & International Partnerships, National Museums Scotland Ashley Wakenshaw (she/her) Head of Workforce and Resilience, Museums Galleries Scotland | | | Catherine Cartmell (she/her) Skills Investment Plan Manager, Historic Environment Scotland | #StrategySymposium2025