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City Cruises York

The end of free entry: York residents to be charged to enter museums and gallery

A free trip to Kirkgate in the Castle Museum may be restricted to a few days a year under the new plans. Photograph © Allan Harris on Flickr
Tuesday 21 July, 2015 @ 8.38 pm News YorkMix
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A great big fat perk of living in York looks set to come to an end.

Until now, residents could get a year’s free access to the York Castle Museum, the Yorkshire Museum and the Art Gallery for the price of a YorkCard, currently £3.

To change that and start charging residents, the York Museums Trust – which runs all three – must gain permission from City of York Council.

It has asked to do just that – and the council looks set to agree.

The trust had already announced plans to charge adults £7.50 to visit the refurbished art gallery when it reopens on August 1; and to introduce a YMT card, cost £22, to give one adult year-round access to its venues.

Under proposals being scrutinised by councillors next week, YorkCard holders would get a discounted YMT card – but still have to pay £17 a year.

Otherwise residents will have to pay normal entry price on each visit.

The council’s options

The Yorkshire Museum. Photograph © Richard North on Flickr
The Yorkshire Museum. Photograph © Richard North on Flickr

At the decision session for the executive member for culture, leisure and tourism on July 29, councillors will be presented with three options:

  1. to agree to the trust’s request
  2. to agree to the request but with conditions, or
  3. to continue to insist on free access for YorkCard holders.

Option 3 would have major financial consequences for the council, warns assistant director Charlie Croft in his report.

He said the museums trust based their business plan on the understanding that the council would end free entry for York residents by the time the art gallery reopened on August 1.

Mr Croft says that if the council is not willing to end free entry for residents, it could cost the city £700,000 per year.

He writes:

This cannot be recommended in light of the council’s future budget position.

It should be noted that, should YMT not be able to continue to operate the museums and gallery its staff and obligations would revert to the council, creating a potential multi-million pound liability.

What about option 2 – agree to bring in the £17 residents’ card but with conditions?

In negotiations with Cllr Nigel Ayre, executive member for leisure, culture and tourism, the trust has suggested it would be willing to agree to two concessions…

  1. Kids Go Free, allowing free access for children under 16, and
  2. continued free access for York residents during the two-day Residents Festival and on one further day to be specified.

Cllr Ayre said:

I am pleased that as a result of these discussions there is an option to offer free access to the Art Gallery and Castle Museum for YorkCard holders during the Residents’ Festival and one further day as well as all year-round free access to under 16s.

The financial pressures

Chief executive of York Museums Trust Janet Barnes outside York Art Gallery. Photograph: Richard McDougall
Chief executive of York Museums Trust Janet Barnes outside York Art Gallery. Photograph: Richard McDougall

Due to funding pressures, the council’s annual grant to the YMT has reduced from £1.5m in 2012/13 to £600,000 in 2015/16, a 60% cut.

The trust’s revenue funding is nearly £1m per year less than it was just two years ago because of budget cuts from central government.

YMT is faced with further serious cuts in funding.

But it is also investing heavily in its venues. Since it came into being in 2002, the trust has raised about £16m which it has invested in the council’s buildings, gardens, public programmes and collections.

Outgoing trust chief executive Janet Barnes said the investment would continue:

Future plans also include extending Yorkshire Museum by creating a new temporary exhibition gallery in the basement currently used as a museum store.

YMT is also planning to create a brand new visitor attraction at York St Mary’s which will tell the history of York using the latest technology.

The longer term plan will be improving York Castle Museum to create museum facilities appropriate for the 21st century.

All these projects “will celebrate the importance of York and we will need the support of the city council and local residents to achieve them,” she said.


York Art Gallery to charge adults £7.50 entry fee when it reopens

Popular York café to expand into city’s revamped art gallery

York Art Gallery: Date for reopening and first exhibitions revealed

79 Comments
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Kazz
4 years ago

I am a resident of York and have visited York City centre twice in two years re parking costs and no free entries to venues with the York card. I shop out of town where parking is free and travel to other out of town locations where there are other interesting free or low cost venues. I used to go into York every other weekend and go to one of the free venues and have my lunch there. Shame. No wonder traders are loosing money. But on the bright side more charity shops can move in as the shops close!

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Jean jones
5 years ago

I think it’s disgusting that the Minster charges £10 I’m sure it use to be abt £4 I visit York 3 or 4 times a year & have seen the cost of entrance get higher & higher in museums etc I believe if they charged £4 an adult & £2 a child they would still be reaping it in at the Minster Its sheer greed I know the amount of renovation that’s going on but you’re not telling me that they aren’t getting grant sets. The committee treat this Minster as if it were their own Well it’s not!!! A house of God is suppose to be for everyone I tried to enter one time & was told ‘You can’t come in there’s a service on’!! So what There seems to be a clique who think that the Minster is theirs alone & to my mind this clique is the committee It’s wrong The exorbitant charges are a disgrace & should be reviewed

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David Fielding
6 years ago

Visited York on Tuesday, the place has gone off. The Castle Museum display is not a patch on what it used to be. Took people from South Africa,will be giving it a miss in the future.

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Time Short
7 years ago

I would quite often go into the Art Gallery to look at one particular painting. This will facility will now be denied to me if charges are introduced. No point having an art gallery if nobody is going to visit it. The proposal is a disgrace.

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Dave Taylor
7 years ago

Petition the Council to maintain free entry for residents: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/public-art-gallery-should-be-free-of-charge/

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rachel Semlyen
7 years ago

It will not ‘cost the Council’ to let in York Citizens for free….in fact the museums gain from our spending in the shops and cafe and bringing in accompanying paying visitors from outside the city. How can they convince us that they pay for our free entry? This is an accounting thing. Not reality.

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Jane Hamilton
7 years ago

Free aint possible anymore. People need to recognise this is the impact of the relentless squeeze on public sector funding and the cuts that our local authority have to absorb, and that York has been affected especially badly. If you’re bothered about this then write to the council and YMT on some reasonable subsidised level of entry for residents.

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Maureen Dow
7 years ago

Changes made due to cost cutting to ycc by central gov. Art gallery refurbishment made possible by lottery grant, children under 16 will still have free admission. London galleries have enormous grants from central government and donations from wealthy sponsers

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Angie Ransome
7 years ago

York council are getting greedy other cities like london have free museums so why can’t york

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David Addyman
7 years ago

Sandra Forsyth says NO ! This way round.

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Iris Poole
7 years ago

Boo hoo

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Richard John Cameron
7 years ago

I may be wrong, but many, many years ago before the name ‘Castle Museum’ was used….I seem to remember a small plaque near the entrance of the building, stating that the contents were ‘donated freely’ to the people of York by a Dr. Kirk (whose collection it originally was) and at the time, was called ‘The Kirk collection’. If I am right…Perhaps someone ought to look into the legallity of charging York residents.

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Matthew
7 years ago

I can’t blame the museums or the council for this. It’s the tory government cutting back so much on local funding. I’m sure now we have a Tory majority it won’t be long until the NRM and the London museums charge too. Maybe it’s time that local people do more to look after their museums instead of leaving it to the council/government. If we don’t there won’t be anything left soon.

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Michele Harrison
7 years ago

Sad

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John Compost Cossham
7 years ago

Another step towards capitalism and profit making, and away from shared resources.
This step will discriminate against financially poor people, and effectively prevent them getting access to our heritage.
Disgusting.

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Sonya Hughes
7 years ago

I’m sure many people have given tourist info / directions bolstering the coffers as a pensioner who has always paid tax community charges ect think this is too much too late typical YORK council cancel all catering at council forays cars here there and everywhere and the elusive expenses then perhaps residents would be happy to pay a reduced charge you’ve already killed the market by over charging there are more weeks in a year than July/August EVERYTHING in York is geared to tourism people who have helped build the city are just there to support council overspending remember the Toll bridge how much did that cost the residents who paid the admin for refunding

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Joanna Cave
7 years ago

That’s a great shame.

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Tammy Roberts
7 years ago

soo crap, this was one of the few perks which balanced out the inconveniences you have to put up with by living in a Tourist City and x2 university town. So now, less affluent residents live on the outskirts, bike in, serve the tourists and go home but are not able to afford to do anything themselves 🙁 starting to feel a bit upstairs/downstairs being seen and not heard.

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James M Howard
7 years ago

Driving the people of York, out of York, soon all there will be are coffee shops and stag do ‘s, such a shame.

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Roy
7 years ago

Why not consider an honesty box system for a period?

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Helen Harrison
7 years ago

Well, hands up if you are moaning about this and you voted Tory……

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Caroline Turner
7 years ago

Not sure what this will achieve – I won’t be taking visiting guests to these places any more as I don’t want to pay to see things again and again … But was happy to proudly take visiting friends …Odd move. As a family of 5 we find the entrance fees where there is one extortionate … And as for having to leave through a gift shop as well…

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Susan Hebblethwaite
7 years ago

Thats a shame its one of my favourite places in York, i cant afford to pay to go in 😢. Been visiting this place since i was a kiddie !!

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Tracy Millett
7 years ago

That’s disgusting!!

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Amy White
7 years ago

I went there on Monday with the kids as its free but no way would I pay to visit something in my own city which I pay council tax for !!

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Gill King
7 years ago

Places like this were a lifeline for wet days with small (and not so small) children. Most of us will grudgingly stump up £17 or £21 but those with the least will just lose out on genuinely lovely educational places.

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Shelagh Garside
7 years ago

Maybe if they hadn’t cocked up with wrongly fining people for using the roads in York to subsidise their all singing & dancing Council Offices then York residents wouldn’t as usual be bearing the brunt….

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Joe
7 years ago

Why is everyone blaming the council? The Tories in central government are the disgrace. They’re the ones cutting the funding everywhere, not just York. I don’t want to pay either but I’d rather that than they have to close everything.

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Nicola Thomis
7 years ago

Richard Morley this is what I was on about!

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Richard Morley
7 years ago

Tory spending cuts for us while giving handouts to millionaires.

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Martin Hollins
7 years ago

Shouldnt be surprised with this shower, quite happy to waste £1m + on a cycle track around the nortnern ring road which nobody uses.

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Stacey Medhurst-Stevens
7 years ago

The York card is going to be £5 per adult now anyway so that’s an increase there x

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Ann Stow
7 years ago

Typical!

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John Jones
7 years ago

It’s a great shame that this has happened but it will not stop me taking my 6 year old daughter to these museums. We need to invest in these museums and also in the financial situation the country is on look at ways we can repay the debt and try and prioritise where funding and investment needs to be allocated. It’s about balancing the books. It’s not great but it has to be done. I still think £7,50 represents good value for money.

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Chera Blower
7 years ago

Right that’s it I am withholding my (huge) council tax until they sort this sh*t out. I’d likely have a better more culturally significant lifestyle on the dole anyway and take up squatters rights in York’s many abandoned buildings, way to boost the economy you fools!

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Chelle Oconnell
7 years ago

Wrong on so many levels 😞

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Chelle Oconnell
7 years ago

Can someone tell me, where the money came from to renovate the art gallery ? This is a genuine question. And why build new toilets, then take them away? Why build a fountain then want to take it away?

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Janet Bennett
7 years ago

Sad.

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Serpiente Solar Roja
7 years ago

The cuts were only so they could invest in the refurbishments of the Gallery so they could charge us all. As I said, an investment and another strategy to get your money. Not surprised. Businesses in town are going to suffer the charges in car parks too.

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Serpiente Solar Roja
7 years ago

Unfortunately that’s the party that got elected! Think, who’s fault is it? That, or the elections were set up

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Jane Dicken
7 years ago

York Council 🙁

0
Helen Sally Apol Wilson
7 years ago

Better visit soon.

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Stephen Waring
7 years ago

The building will make an awesome Starbucks 😎 jump on the train to the excellent free museums and galleries in London and Edinburgh

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Denise Simkins
7 years ago

Seems a shame that residents will only get one weekend a year and in the coldest month think york think residents

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steve conroy
7 years ago

Why such a high amount. I am a local artist but will not pay effectively London prices for a very provincial collection. At best I will go once. The V & A tried this years ago but soon changed their minds. The main gallery should be free with high quality temporary exhibitions being charged for

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Dorothy Nicholson
Reply to  steve conroy
7 years ago

Totally!

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gina brockbank
7 years ago

I already pay for this with my high council tax. It will be cheaper to go to Leeds art gallery. Why spend all this money on making the gallery ‘better’ including gardens? I’d like to know what this council is spending my council tax on.

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Sally Grant
7 years ago

I agree with a £22 yearly cost rather than any close.

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Michele Harrison
7 years ago

How sad

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Ali Thompson
7 years ago

A sad day but a sign of the times

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Emma Buckle
7 years ago

Only once in 10 years so don’t mind paying no great loss!!

0

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