Museums

SEMLAC represents the interests of 274 Registered museums in the region

Over 10 million people visit the region’s museums and galleries each year

12 museum collections within the region have been designated as being of pre-eminent importance holding material of international and national significance

The region is especially rich in defence heritage museums and archives including regimental and armed services museums. Significant collections of international importance can be seen in the region’s university museums such as Oxford and Reading

Approximately 60% of museums in the region are independent charities

Strong city museum services in Winchester, Southampton, Portsmouth, Reading, and Brighton and Hove. Well established ‘County Museums Services’ for Oxfordshire, Hampshire, and Buckinghamshire Museum Development Services running in Surrey, Kent and West Sussex

Many museums in the region have won national accolades. The River and Rowing Museum, Henley and the Weald and Downland Museum in West Sussex have won a Museum of the Year award. Hampshire’s hands-on education centre in Gosport, SEARCH, and Buckinghamshire County Museum’s Roald Dahl Gallery in Aylesbury, are both past winners of the Gulbenkian museum award for the most imaginative education work.

There are over 7,000 museum volunteers in the region all helping in a variety of ways from office cleaning to security guards

Historic houses and associated specialist and general collections are well represented by the large numbers of National Trust properties and English Heritage sites