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Heritage Diversity Task Force
‘Diversifying Audiences’ is the commission for a report and recommendations given to IPUP’s Helen Weinstein and Cultural Cooperation’s Prakash Daswani by the Heritage Diversity Task Force (HDTF) for the London Mayor’s Commission on African and Asian Heritage.
Helen Weinstein worked as Co-Chair with Prakash Daswani of Cultural Cooperation to conduct research and write a report on the practice and policy of diversifying audiences across the Capital’s cultural institutions; and to make recommendations to the sector in general and the HDTF in particular.
The brief was given to the Co-Chairs in the Autumn of 2008 working under the direction of Chief Cultural Strategist at the GLA, Makeda Coaston. Leading practitioners for diversifying audiences were identified with assistance from Makeda Coaston and Janice Cheddie, Consultant to the GLA HDTF.
Research was conducted by Helen Weinstein by recording open-ended interviews with audience practitioners at their heritage institutions and the collection of key institutional policy documents alongside evidence of outreach, education, and new audience outputs.
14 organisations were represented on the sub-committee to draw together the learning from the research interview and documentation gathering. There were meetings in close succession ton 21st March and 22nd April at the GLA to structure the report together and to find a clear voice for the recommendations.
The 14 organisations represented are The National Portrait Gallery, The Royal Academy, The Natural History Museum, English Heritage, The National Trust, Imperial War Museum, London Transport Museum, Hackney Museum, London Hub, Museum of London/Museum in Docklands, Tate Modern, The National Archive, London Metropolitan Archives, Tate Modern, Victoria & Albert Museum.
The report was finalised and delivered to the members of the Heritage Diversity Task Force on 16th July 2009. To download the report, click here.
The recommendation taken forward is a commitment to audience research across the cultural sector and the foundation of the DHG, the Diversity in Heritage Group, so that audience practitioners have a professional body for advocacy and research in order to share best practice across the country’s audience practitioners and heritage organisations. The founding meeting of the DHG was held on 1st and 2nd October 2009 at the Institute for the Public Understanding of the Past, York. If you wish to contact the DHG, you can do so via diversityhg@googlemail.com.