For over a century, public donations have helped to build the museum collection to what it is today. It’s thanks to the generosity of local people that we’re able to represent the stories of our area’s remarkable past.
Whilst we deeply appreciate offers of donations, limited storage space and high costs associated with item care and conversation require us to be selective with what we accept.
We have a comprehensive process to evaluate which items can be accepted, ensuring the protection of our current collections and making the best use of available resources.
Criteria
We adhere to a Collection Management Plan, and donations are accepted if they align with this plan. Broadly speaking, criteria for accepting items include:
- importance to the heritage of Middlesbrough
- relevance and enhances our current collections
- condition of the item
- size and store capacity
Making a donation
Use the contact form at the end of this page. We’ll need your name, contact details, information about your object, and a photograph.
If your item is of interest to the collection, we may request to hold it temporarily while we study it further. We’ll give you a receipt and a timeline for our decision, and aim to notify you within one month.
If we accept your donation into the Middlesbrough Collection, we’d require you to complete a transfer of ownership form. We’ll finalise our acquisition process and your object will become part of Middlesbrough Museums’ Collection.
If we don’t accept your object, it could be for one or more of the following reasons:
- we already have similar items
- the item doesn’t align with our collecting priorities
- the item isn’t in suitable condition
- the item’s provenance is unknown or unclear
If appropriate, we may suggest other museums that might be interested.
Legal notes
Please don’t send unsolicited objects through the post or bring objects to our venues without prior arrangement. We can’t accept these and are not responsible for their care, condition, or return. Unsolicited items will be disposed of.
Middlesbrough Museums adhere to legal and international conventions on the possession and use of wildlife specimens. CITES, an international agreement, ensures that trade in wild animal and plant specimens does not threaten their survival. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA1981) makes it illegal to possess wild bird eggs or parts thereof, except in collections predating the Act, provided their provenance can be proven. Currently, we do not accept any egg collections, even if historically significant.
Donations of Natural Science specimens are reviewed by our collections team on a case-by-case basis, considering legalities, condition, and relevance to our existing collections.
