Unlocking Potential Fund

As part of the Museum Futures Programme, the Unlocking Potential Fund will support museums to address issues that are preventing them from building their financial sustainability. Examples of such issues could be: outdated or inefficient systems; a website that does not allow you to effectively attract visitors or fundraise; or a lack of expertise or a skills deficit preventing the development of appropriate strategies for specific areas of work.

The most important thing is what you will be able to do as a direct result of having addressed the issue – what potential will it unlock, and how will being able to do those things put the museum in a stronger financial position?

All applicants must have completed an Organisational Health Checker prior to applying for funding. 

• Organisations that run Accredited museums in Scotland.
• Organisations that run non-Accredited museums in Scotland – please note the criteria for non-Accredited museums listed below.
• Formally constituted groups of museums (eg. geographical forums).
• In line with Scottish Government requirements, to access MGS funding, organisations should be able to demonstrate compliance with the Scottish Government’s Fair Work First policy. This requires workers to receive payment of the Real Living Wage and to have access to appropriate channels for effective voice. Further information can be found in Fair Work First – Guidance for funding applicants. For Museum Futures funding, MGS may be able to consider exceptions for organisations who are working towards, but not yet able to pay the Real Living Wage. Exceptions may be offered where it is clear the funding requested will accelerate their move towards being able to do so. All other requirements should be met.

Eligibility for non-Accredited museums

To be eligible for funding your organisation must meet the following criteria: 

• Have a formally adopted constitution which states what the purpose and core activities of your organisation is.
  Meet the 2022 ICOM definition of a museum: 

“A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to the public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.” 

This means that we cannot accept applications from museums whose collections are entirely in private ownership. 

• Your museum must be a physical site that is open to the public at least 20 days a year. Your organisation must engage the public with your collection. 

• Operating a museum in line with the above definition should be one of your organisation’s main purposes, or the main function of a dedicated department. 

• Benefit deriving from the grant must demonstrably be primarily for your museum function. 

To assess whether your museum meets this definition we will ask you questions about: 

• The size of your collection and the types of objects you care for. Some collections are not considered museum collections, for example the live collections of zoos and gardens; collections of archives; and digital collections. 

• Who owns your collection. We ask about collection ownership to understand your role and responsibility in looking after your collection. You do not need to own your collection to apply, but we may require further details about your organisation’s agreement with the collection owner. We are unable to fund museums whose collections are entirely privately owned. 

• If and how you add to your collection. Museum collections must not be ‘closed’ collections. You must be able to continue to add to your collection and develop it. 

• Your organisation’s purpose and museum activity. This will include questions about your venue, when it is open, and how you engage the public with your collection. 

You can apply for between £10,000 and £100,000. Projects can last up to 2 years and must begin within 6 months of the award date.

Before applying to this fund, you must complete an Organisational Health Checker and return it to the Museum Futures Team, who will arrange a follow-up call to discuss opportunities for support. The Organisational Health Checker can be downloaded at the bottom of this page and can be sent to MuseumFutures@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk.

If you did not discuss the focus of your application with us during conversation about the Organisation Health Checker, please contact your Museums Future contact and let them know you are planning to apply for this fund. They will be able to offer further advice on your proposal.

Before you apply to this fund, you must complete the Fair Work First Employer Declaration. You do not need to complete the declaration if you have already completed the declaration this financial year or if your organisation is entirely volunteer-run. The declaration can be downloaded from the bottom of the page and sent to grants@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk by the date of submission of your application.

Applications will be available on our online portal, MGS Online, in the coming weeks. In the meantime, you can contact the Museum Futures team to discuss a proposal:  MuseumFutures@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk

The Unlocking Potential Fund operates as a rolling fund, meaning you can apply at any time once you are ready. Applications will be assessed on a continual basis, with decisions provided within 8 weeks of submission.

Applications will be available on our online portal, MGS Online, in the coming weeks.

The fund will remain open until February 2026.

Organisations can also apply to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for match funding through the National Lottery Heritage Grants £10,000-£250,000 programme. We have aligned our application forms to help streamline the process, making it easier to apply to both funds. The Heritage Fund is happy to offer pre-application advice. Interested organisations can get advice by submitting a Project Enquiry Form.

In line with MGS timescales, The Heritage Fund aims to review applications and provide a decision within eight weeks of submission.

Evidence of need

You need to help us to understand the issue you are seeking to address and how it is currently preventing you from moving forward.

Impact

You need to articulate the impact that addressing this barrier will have on your financial sustainability. Help us to understand the potential that will be unlocked and how you will make the most of this.

Quality of proposed approach

We need to understand why you are choosing to address the issue in the way you are proposing and why you can be reasonably confident that this is the best approach. Tell us about what you have considered, research you have undertaken and advice you have taken.

Deliverability

Tell us how you’ve planned the project, how you’ll deliver it, and what skills your organisation has to make it a success. Explain why the proposed approach is the most suitable method for delivering this project. Strong applications will include a detailed project plan, a detailed project budget with evidence of costs, work briefs for any commissioned work, and job descriptions for any new posts.

Financial need

Tell us why you need additional financial support to carry out your project. As part of the assessment process, we will consider your organisation’s financial capacity to deliver the proposed activity. This includes whether you are in a stronger position than other applicants to fund the project from your own reserves, or whether you have access to a wider range of alternative funding sources.

There is no definitive list as each museum’s circumstances will be different. What could be very effective for one museum may have limited impact for another, much depends on what the museum plans to do once the block to achieving greater sustainability has been removed. The focus and basis on which funding decisions will be made is the potential that will be unlocked. However, these are some of the things that can be supported.

• Streamlining of processes to increase efficiency
• Website development and related digital transformation
• Software and other tools to improve business processes
• Governance/board development
• Market and audience research
• Fundraising support with sustainable legacies (upskilling, developing fundraising strategies, setting up fundraising programmes such as legacy giving)
• Training for trustees, staff and volunteers
• Costs for new staff or additional staff time required for developing or delivering your project
• Indirect staff costs for existing members of staff who will support the project
• Reasonable consultancy costs associated with the above

• We will not be able to support posts to deliver activity that will need to be sustained after the posts come to an end, unless there is a very clear plan for how you will sustain that activity.
• The focus of Museum Futures is helping museums to achieve a more financially sustainable future to ensure that they can continue to serve communities into the future. Therefore, we will not fund activity where there is no direct link to improving financial sustainability.