Ask the Expert Q&A – Culture24

What is your primary role in the sector?

Culture24 is an independent charity that brings arts and heritage organisations closer to audiences. We challenge outdated notions of what arts and heritage organisations are and offer new ways of working through our unique brand of action research (e.g. Let’s Get Real), digital publications (e.g. Museum Crush), festivals and events (e.g. our forthcoming Museum Lates Conference).

We lead the sector in developing the necessary skills and literacies to use digital as a force for positive change, building resilience and capacity. We bring organisations together to do things they couldn’t do on their own, create shared opportunities and overcome shared problems together. We champion creative ways to help them exploit their assets and make the necessary strategic and practical changes to create value for the widest possible audience. We are an Arts Council England Sector Support Organisation.

Why is it important to you to be involved in the Museums + Heritage Show?

The Museums + Heritage Show is a brilliant opportunity to meet people from across the sector. It’s a chance to talk about our projects, share expertise with museums and heritage professionals and learn from others.

What are your goals of participating in this year’s Show?

We want to hear from people in the sector, particularly around their museums’ digital needs and their interests in Lates programming, then explore ways we can help them through our various offers, events and projects.

What can visitors expect by visiting your stand?

Smiling, welcoming faces!  Plus an interest in hearing more about your specific needs and of course some expert advice, particularly focused on building digital capacity and understanding, engaging audiences online and developing Museum Lates offers.

What do you think are some of the key challenges professionals are currently facing in this sector?

Remaining relevant to audiences whose behaviours, interests and motivations are rapidly changing because of digital technology and changing cultural and social contexts. All our work is about helping museums both understand these changes and respond meaningfully to them.

What are you looking forward to most at this year’s Museums + Heritage Show?

We are looking forward to the Learning Zone sessions, guest curated by Anra Kennedy, our Director of Content and Partnerships. This year’s topics include live streaming, inclusive museums and measuring learning impact. Worth a visit!