National accreditation for Zoological Museum
Posted on: 18 July 2019
Trinity’s Zoological Museum – a constantly popular educational attraction for tourists, researchers and students alike – has maintained Full Accreditation status under the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland (MSPI).
The Zoological Museum was one of ten recipients to receive an award at a ceremony in Kilkenny Castle earlier this month.
Curator of the Zoological Museum, Dr Martyn Linnie, said:
I am delighted to accept this award on behalf of the Zoological Museum. With global diversity in rapid decline, natural history museums are becoming more and more relevant to today’s society and the Zoological Museum strives to raise awareness of such issues through our outreach and civic engagement programmes.
The award reflects our ongoing commitment to increasing public access and education, while maintaining a high standard of care and governance of this historic collection.
Speaking at the Heritage Council’s Museum Standards Programme for Ireland awards ceremony, Minister of State for Local Government and Electoral Reform, John Paul Phelan, spoke about the significance of the cultural sector in Ireland.
He said: “High standards of care for our heritage and investment in high quality design will ensure we pass on a proud legacy for future generations.”
Established by the Heritage Council in 2006 to benchmark and promote professional standards in the care of collections, the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland (MSPI) has attracted involvement across the cultural spectrum, from national institutions to small, volunteer-led organisations.
A testament to the continued dedication and professionalism, the Zoological Museum is one of 65 museums and galleries to benefit from participation in the MSPI to date.
While recognising the achievement of standards through accreditation, the MSPI also supports the museum community as a whole. Its participants engage in a range of processes, which help to secure Ireland’s collections for future generations and to engage its visitors with what those collections have to offer.
During the audit of the Zoological Museum, the external assessor commented that its last assessment in 2014 identified strengths related to research and collections care. The Museum continues its role as a teaching and research collection, while using the three summer months to push forward on developing the Museum’s public profile.
The revenue raised has contributed significantly to improvements in the museum and its infrastructure while enabling the employment of students to provide public access to the collections and exhibits.
An external assessor said: “It is remarkable that all this work is carried out by a single member of staff, acting as Honorary Curator. His tireless work with the museum collection, its care and access, is evident throughout the museum.”
The Zoological Museum is open daily to visitors every day until August 31.