UK government announces £20 million programme for libraries and lifelong learning

The MLA welcomes the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills’ (DIUS) publication of the transformation fund prospectus which identifies how a wide range of groups and partnerships of all sizes can win funding. The deadline for bids is July 12 this year but an ‘early bird’ funding pot of £1 million is available for ideas submitted by June 12.

The Transformation Fund will help to deliver the Government’s Learning Revolution White Paper published in March which set out how Government and a multitude of partner organisations could work together to create a new movement for informal learning, making the best use of all that’s on offer and joining up what’s currently disconnected.

The White Paper invites organisations to indicate their support for this new joined-up movement by signing the learning revolution pledge – the MLA has set itself a target of encouraging 3,000 individual museums, libraries and archives to sign this pledge by March 2010, achieving this target would be a visible demonstration of the key role our spaces, collections and staff play in supporting a thriving culture of informal learning.

The £20 million will fund innovative ideas and Secretary of State John Denham called for people to submit imaginative bids at the launch of the prospectus. Bids will be particularly welcomed that demonstrate partnership working – involving teaming up in new ways to inspire adults to learn new things and organisations coming together from different sectors - such as public sector organisations working with local self organised learning groups.

Natasha Innocent, MLA Senior Policy Adviser Learning and Skills, said: “MLA believes this is a real opportunity for museums, libraries and archives to open up the potential of our sector to work in new ways with new partners.”

View the Transformation Fund Prospectus 2009-10

Sign up your museum, library or archive to the Learning Revolution pledge,