The Cartoon Museum in Bloomsbury

MUSEUMS and historic houses are cutting costs and looking for new ways to raise revenue as they face increasing energy bills and changing visitors habits.

Venues have said that people are spending less on their hiring packages and not buying as many items in gift shops as they look to rein in their spending.

Meanwhile, places including Burgh House, Pollock’s Toy Museum and the Cartoon Museum say that they are facing the double-whammy of inflation on top of energy bills, meaning increased wages for staff.

Visitors seem to be returning, with numbers at the Cartoon Museum at about 100 per cent of their pre-Covid levels. However its energy bills will go up from £4,500 to up to £13,000 in the next year.

It is already seeing changing dynamics from those who come in.

The museum, which opened in 2006 before it moved to its current location in Wells Street in 2019, charges for entry and hosts exhibitions, with a permanent collection on display.

Director Joe Sullivan said: “It’s interesting as we had an Open House weekend recently, where we don’t charge people to get in. We usually have 350 people coming in across the weekend, but the money we don’t get from admissions we usually make back in the shop.

“This year we had 200 more, 550 people who came in, but we didn’t make any money through sales. Normally people seem to think ‘I’m not spending any money getting in, I will in the shop’, but clearly this time people had come in because they wanted a free day out.”

The museum currently runs at a deficit, but has a plan to help grow visitor numbers by a third and ensure it is financially sustainable.

Because of its size, as one of the small independent museums in central London, it is already frugal, but the 35-year-old boss Mr Sullivan is scrutinising costs: “We have always tried to be energy conscious because of our financial position, so that will continue. But we will also invest where we can, where we think it will help us, including areas like venue hire.

“Right now we can stomach it. But if this goes on for a long time, and government support does not continue, then that might change. We are in a more fortunate position than other places. We are going to focus on increasing our revenues – 75 per cent of our income comes through the door.”

The picture is similar across Bloomsbury at Pollock’s Toy Museum, which has an array of historic children’s playthings and still makes 3D theatre displays. A new energy contract starts in November, with a rise of 25 per cent from its previous level of £800 a month.

Pollock’s is considering more funding drives and examining the possibility of installing solar panels.

Jack Fawdry, who runs the museum which has been in his family for three generations, said: “I think our bigger worry is that we will see a drop-off in people coming to visit and buying tickets and spending in the shop, as they will have less disposable income.

“This is worrying as we rely totally on people visiting to stay open.”

He said that while they currently have a contract signed before price rises, which meant a small increase, they were waiting for firmer projections.

“It’s clear it is going to be a big increase. We are always going to be struggling because we’re a small museum in the middle of central London. At the best of times London is pretty inhospitable to small independent organisations like us.” he said.

The Cartoon Museum by Sam Jacob Studio. Copyright Jim Stephenson 2019

Inside Pollock’s Toy Museum

“We’re wary of putting prices up. They’re £9 at the moment, but I think £10 is a big psychological thing. Then if we do put them up, less people might come too. It’s terribly exhausting. We are working as hard as we can. If we can’t survive it will be very difficult, partly because of the family connections. I don’t want to look back and think, ‘I didn’t try hard enough’.”

Burgh House [ceridwen]

Director of the historic Burgh House in Hampstead, Mark Francis, said they are bracing themselves for increasing energy prices which could go up by three times as of next month.

The venue makes most of its money from weddings, but has already seen the margins change as prices go up.

“You will agree a menu and prices, for example, but then the costs rise. You can’t really go back and renegotiate, so you end up taking a bit of a hit. We are already seeing people cut back on weddings, he said.

The venue also hosts book talks and launches, and Mr Francis is looking at possibly adding a small sum on to ticket prices, with the extra amount paying for entry for people who otherwise would not be able to attend.

Mr Francis said: “I don’t want to be elitist and just be confined to just a certain type of person. We should be here for everyone.”

He added that the venue had long been used informally as a “warm bank”, where people who were unable to afford to heat their home would come in to warm up and thaw out.

“Traditionally we have had older ladies who have done that,” he said.

“They don’t want to pay for coming in and heating and the lighting. I think we find that around Hampstead that they may have moved here in the 1980s when it wasn’t as expensive then.

“There is a lot of these old dears who are asset rich and cash poor. It will be the same with libraries and churches. I’ve spoken to them before and they say, ‘I can’t afford a sandwich today’.”