St Albans Museums Shortlisted for National Award Following Award Wins at Hertfordshire Association of Museums
St Albans Museums has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award following a number of award wins locally at Hertfordshire Association of Museums.
The Catching the Chain exhibition, which explores the history of criminal justice, and is on display at St Albans Museum + Gallery until 21 April, has been nominated for Temporary or Touring Exhibition of the Year at the 23rd annual Museum + Heritage Awards.
The awards celebrate the very best of museums, galleries, and cultural and heritage visitor attractions. The ceremony to reveal the winners will take place on the evening of Thursday 15 May 15 2025 at Hilton Park Lane, London.
Other shortlisted museums across the 18 categories include the British Museum, the Natural History Museum, and Horniman Museum and Gardens.
More locally, the Museums Team have picked up awards for two Arts Council England funded projects at the Hertfordshire Association of Museums awards. The team won the Creative Health Award for their year-long Community in Residence programme with Hertfordshire M.E. / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Support Group.
Learning and Engagement Officer Danielle Cavender-Handley and Archaeologist Tom Lucas each received a Heritage Hero award for their work on Digitising the Park, including the Tread the Past trail around Verulamium Park, Voicing Verulamium in the Hypocaust and the Roman Town House project with Passport to Leisure.
Councillor Paul de Kort praised the museums team as part of the Leader’s Announcements in this week’s St Albans City and District Strategy and Resource Committee meeting.
Councillor Anthony Rowlands, Lead for Museums, echoed Cllr de Kort’s sentiments and said:
It is wonderful to see the hard work of the museums team being recognised both regionally and nationally. From year-long community focussed programmes to exhibitions and projects which bring history to life, the variety and breadth of what our museums can offer is something to be proud of. We thank Arts Council England for their generous NPO funding which has made each of these projects a possibility.
Photo above: Danielle Cavender-Handley, right, and Tom Lucas, left, receiving their awards.
Notes to Editors
About St Albans Museums
- St Albans Museums is an award-winning local authority funded museum service which manages and operates two museums, a number of heritage sites and Ancient Scheduled Monuments and cares for the City’s nationally significant collections.
- Amongst its portfolio, the museum service’s key sites include the city-centre venue St Albans Museum + Gallery and Verulamium Museum, a specialist Roman museum located in a much-loved local park.
- The Museums operate as part of St Albans City and District Council (SADC) and receive core funding as part of the Community and Place delivery directorate.
- In April 2023, the Museums Service was awarded just over £1m in funding from Arts Council England as part of its National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) programme. The NPO status has seen the Museums embark on an ambitious programme of events and activities which will be delivered between April 2023 and March 2026.
- Follow @stalbansmuseums on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for latest news and updates.
- St Albans Museums’ collections comprise a wide range of artefacts relating to the development of St Albans over the centuries, from a market town to the modern City we see today.
- For more information about what is on, visit www.stalbansmuseums.org.uk/whats-on where you can view full listings.
- St Albans Museum + Gallery is free to visit and open to the public every day 10am – 4pm.
- Verulamium Museum is a charged-for museum and is open to the public every day 10am-4pm
About Hertfordshire Association of Museums
The Hertfordshire Association of Museums is a dynamic and active network supporting all people who work for or volunteer in our museums with the aim of increasing awareness and raising professional standards. Each year, the association delivers a programme of training, network events and meetings plus an annual awards event.
About Museums + Heritage Awards
The global awards celebrate the very best in the world of museums, galleries, and cultural and heritage visitor attractions.
Full shortlist and more information available here: https://awards.museumsandheritage.com