ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Staff at museums in the UK's Southend have volunteered to clean the premises themselves in a move aimed at saving the council £36,000 over the next three years.

Southend Council will do away with outside cleaning contractors and rely instead on the museum's own staff to keep the city's historic attractions clean. This is expected to help reduce the council's deficit, which currently stands at £7.3million.

"I understand this suggestion came from the staff themselves - and who better to look after the artefacts?" said Carole Mulroney, the councillor responsible for environment, culture and tourism. "I think this is something they have put forward as a saving."

Southend's museums have recently undergone a cost-cutting exercise. The service was restructured in 2021 when one full-time employee along with a pool of 20 special events staff were all let go.

If the scheme is passed by the council, volunteers will take over the cleaning of Southend's Central Museum, Southchurch Hall, the Beecroft Gallery, Prittlewell Priory, the Metal arts group plus the city's bandstands and concert venues.

Museum artefacts need to be cleaned carefully, often by specialists. Most items only require a light dusting at regular intervals, but particular care and caution need to be employed when more detailed cleaning is required - and this is usually carried out by conservationists.

UK museums and stately homes rely heavily on voluntary help to keep them running. The National Trust enlists the aid of archive and conservation volunteers to clean and preserve the catalogue collections in its care, for example. And the Royal Museums in Greenwich also uses volunteers to clean its collection objects.