The cuts to Salford Heritage service means that local people will loose facilities and services. We will see a vital and oversubscribed learning service accessible to 20% fewer schools. This service is offered to local schools free of charge or at a low cost. The museum would also suffer reduced opening hours for our local families and a restriction to our research facilities for local and family historians. Additionally, our popular Memories Matter project would come to an end. This project lends reminiscence handling boxes, exhibitions and picture packs for free to organisations working with older people in Salford. The service makes on average 320 loans per year, which are enjoyed by approximately 5,500 older people. Alongside this our LifeTimes service would also be terminated. This would mean the loss of the twice yearly LifeTimes Link publication which celebrates Salford’s diverse and exciting history. The publication has over 200 subscribers and thousands of readers online, locally, nationally and internationally.
We provide free venues for people to visit and take part in individual, adult, group and family learning as well as providing highly regarded outreach services, especially to the elderly in Salford. Our very presence also contributes to Salford's position in the North West as a tourist destination, bringing in income, investment and pride in the area. Both our sites, Ordsall Hall and Salford Museum and Art Gallery, have recently received investment to develop our visitor experience and yet we are threatened with not being able to fully utilise this investment and see a return on it.