Strike threat over '˜privatisation' of Royal Pavilion and museums

Brighton and Hove City Council plans to move the Royal Pavilion and Museums (RPM) into a cultural trust, which it said would protect them from local authority cuts.

But instead of a two-stage transition, where the RPM would first move into its own Trust, and then merge with the Brighton Dome and Festival, the council now plans to merge the two organisations.

The RPM runs Brighton Museum and Art Gallery, The Booth Museum of Natural History, Hove Museum and Art Gallery, Preston Manor and The Royal Pavilion and its garden.

The plans to hand the contract to run RPM to the Brighton Dome and Festival will go before the policy, growth and resources committee tonight (January 25), and the GMB union said if the move was agreed, it would ballot its staff on strike action.

Mark Turner GMB branch secretary, said: “The original proposal by the council in January 2017 saw them approve the establishment of a charitable trust for arts and culture in Brighton and Hove into which the Royal Pavilion and Museums would move in April 2018, with the transfer to Brighton Dome and Festival Ltd only being described as a possible roadmap as future step or merger of the two trusts to establish a single ‘cultural trust’ for the city within four years of the charitable trust being established.

“This left staff expecting to have a discussion on the details and timescales of both stages of the proposal, but with the council having now without warning or meaningful consultation unilaterally changed direction and instead are looking to simply transfer staff and management services straight to the Brighton Dome.”

He said the move had ‘angered staff’ and that it would ‘potentially see museum services diminished and jobs put at risk’.

Mr Turner said if a strike goes ahead, it could see the ‘Royal Pavilion and all of Brighton’s museums closed sometime in early spring and summer as staff look to walk out to protect Brighton’s past for the future’.

He said: “GMB calls upon Cllr Warren Morgan and the Labour minority administration to withdraw the item on policy, resources and growth committee agenda this Thursday to allow for meaningful negotiations with us and the workforce to resolve this impasse for the interest of staff and the city.”

Brighton and Hove City Council, however, saw the move as ‘bringing together the entire historic Royal Pavilion Estate’.

The council said: “Under the proposal, the RPM would be led by the existing management team, supported by a new board committee of the shadow board and the current trustees of Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival Ltd. This would maintain the focus on providing professional standards of museum management in the service while allowing for innovation in working across the Royal Pavilion Estate and the city’s other museum sites.

“The new Trust will also maintain the same roles, terms and conditions of staff within the RPM, with a commitment to value their expertise, experience and enthusiasm for the work they do so well.

It said the Trust would have a 25-year contract ‘which will secure the future of the RPM for the long term’.

It added that the new Trust would be able to ‘take full advantage of charitable giving, tax and rate relief benefits and access a range of fundraising and commercial development opportunities’.

Cllr Warren Morgan, leader of the council, said: “Having reviewed the alternative options for this service, I am more confident than ever that the proposals represent the best way to secure the future of our museums, our collections and, of course, the Royal Pavilion, for future generations of residents and visitors, and to provide a more sustainable future for our highly valued staff as we move into a new period of huge financial uncertainty.

“I am determined not to let our Royal Pavilion, our museums, or the people who work there to be put at risk, and I wouldn’t be standing four-square behind this new Trust if I didn’t believe it was the best way to avoid that.

“We are putting in place a programme of staff engagement to make sure that we explain clearly what the alternatives are that have been considered, and why we have reached this conclusion. The programme will enable staff to become more involved in the vision and operational delivery of the new arrangements and to continue to have their voices heard. I’ve asked that staff are involved at all levels in the new Trust to ensure this is the case moving forward.

“I have proposed to trade unions that we work together in advance of the transfer date of 1st July to establish commitments within the contract with the Trust, to ensure that staff expertise lies at the heart of the new organisation, and that any concerns they have are given proper consideration. I welcome a positive dialogue with staff and trade unions to make this project a success.”