Mark Brown (‘Shocking lack of funds’ hits museum collecting as art market booms, 16 February) writes about inadequate funding for museums, focusing on their purchasing powers, implicitly those of national museums. But the true silent crisis is in regional museums countrywide. Their galleries are being turned into “fun” spaces, their curators are being sacked, if they haven’t been already, their lovingly gathered (often donated) collections removed from display, to be outhoused in distant stores. Or the museums are just shut down – look at Canterbury Heritage Museum, abruptly closed last autumn. It was council funded, like most local museums, and councils of course have mandatory responsibilities such as social care. Is it not time for central government to fund local museums? The nationals could surely spare some cash for local museums.
Marian Campbell
Oxford
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