Museum Development Midlands (MDM) encourages all Accredited Museums and those Working Towards Accreditation (WTA) to take part in the Annual Museum Survey for England.
The Annual Museum Survey is funded by Arts Council England and operated by Museum Development South West and PS Research in collaboration with Museum Development England.
Engagement with the Annual Museum Survey 2026 increased by 12% compared with the previous year, providing a stronger evidence base and greater data confidence. The results offer deeper insight into museums’ operating environments, including the role and importance of local authority support and levels of optimism for the year ahead.
““This data is becoming an increasingly important input into policymaking. It helps us see how experiences vary by geography, scale and operating model, anticipate the effects of changes in local governance and the wider political landscape, and shape support around what museums and the communities they serve need most.””
New data reveals that 69% of museums in England receive a wide range of investment and support from local authorities.
The survey report sets out the different levels of local authority backing that museums receive. The number of museums reporting that they are ‘local authority reliant’ increased from 12% last year to 17% this year, with building premises, funding and facilities being the most common ways local authorities underpin the sector. The provision of local authority owned buildings is significant, particularly for smaller museums. A third of micro museums operate in local authority buildings. Of the 38% of museums that report receiving project grant funding in 2025/26, 29% receive funding from a local authority. Local authorities of all levels are playing a critical role in museum provision across England, as 40% of museums receiving local authority support receive support from a town or parish council, rising to 53% among museums with fewer than 10,000 visitors.
The survey mainly collects quantitative data, which represents the audiences, workforce and financial operational context of museums across England. This data is valuable for gaining an understanding of museums in their locality and in a regional and national context. Participating museums can use the data to benchmark their performance year on year and identify trends across the sector at a regional and national level.
All museums that respond get a personalised calculation of the economic impact of their activities for that financial year, as well as insight into how their own operations compare within the region.
The national and regional reports from previous years can be viewed here
Move your mouse over or click through tabs to view different analysis.
You can read the 2026 England report by clicking on this link and read the Midlands area report below
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