Campaigners launch petition against cuts to Museum opening hours

In the wake of the proposals made by Erewash Borough Council to reduce opening hours at the Erewash Museum, campaigners have set up a petition to begin a fight against the plans.

The authority is aiming to save money by closing the site on High Street in Ilkeston on a Tuesday and reduce opening hours on every other day by 25%.  It is also planning on making a part-time manager redundant as well as a member of the front-of-house staff.

Carl Shaw contacted Erewash Sound in the wake of on-line and paper-based petitions being launched by campaigners, signatures for which have already reached into four figures.  He claimed that the museum would never recover if the cuts went through, suggesting that there would be no capacity to run events like the beach, no more safe spaces and meetups for the community, and no capacity to invest in income generation for the future, and that the service would dwindle and die a slow death as a result.

Mr. Shaw levied criticism at the borough council for its approach to the plans regarding the museum claiming: "There was no public consultation, the minutes of the meetings had no details, everyone was blindsided, the Friends and the public were not consulted."

The Erewash Museum, with a history spanning four decades, was voted in the Top 10 most family-friendly museums in the country in recent years.  Mr. Shaw's statement described the Museum as "…an institution for all local people and hub for Ilkeston offering support and help for people suffering from loneliness, isolation and mental health issues."

Details of the petition can be found here: www.change.org/saveerewashmuseum.