Following the Scottish Government’s acceptance of the Empire, Slavery and Scotland’s Museums report and recommendations, this session will look at the museum sector’s response to this report. Speakers will also highlight the Delivering Change anti-oppression programme and discuss how museums and galleries can place anti-oppression principles at the heart of their work.

1. Chair:
Steph Scholten (he/him)
Speakers:
Sheila Asante (she/her)
Mélina Valdelièvre (she/they)
Ellie Muniandy (she/they)
Transformative Change and Meaningful Action
| Session one | 11:35 - 12:25
Connection
#StrategySymposium2024
| Director, The Hunterian
| Programme Manager - Delivering Change, Museums Galleries Scotland
| Senior Education Officer (Equalities), Education Scotland
| Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Officer, National Library of Scotland

2. Empire, Slavery & Scotland’s Museums Steering Group

3. MSPs and MGS staff with the ESSM Steering Group

4. Empire, Slavery & Scotland’s Museums:
Steering Group Recommendations
1: Scotland should create a dedicated space to address our role in empire, colonialism, and historic
slavery. A new organisation should be created to lead this work.
2: Museums should ensure anti-racism is embedded in their workplaces and public spaces.
3: Museums should involve the people of Scotland in shaping their work through co-production, to
promote cultural democracy and participation for all.
4: Museums should commit to research, interpret, and share the histories of Scotland’s links to
empire, colonialism, and historic slavery.
5: Museums should support efforts to promote and embed race equality and anti-racism in the
curricula in a meaningful, effective, and sustainable way.
6: Scottish Government should demonstrate their support for restitution and repatriation of looted
or unethically acquired items in Scottish collections.

5. SheilaAsante
Programme Manager: Delivering Change

6. 2. Museums should ensure anti-racism is embedded in their
workplaces and public spaces.
3. Museums should involve the people of Scotland in shaping their
work through co-production, to promote cultural democracy
and participation for all.
4. Museums should commit to research, interpret, and share the
histories of Scotland’s links to empire, colonialism, and historic
slavery.
ESSM Recommendations 2, 3 & 4

7. • Support from the Scottish Government and the Heritage Fund
• Three-year programme of Learning, Leadership and Funding
• The programme is being developed with the support from an
expert advisory group
Delivering Change

8. • Acknowledging systemic exclusion
• Acknowledging multiple oppressions
• Avoiding segregating language
Language is key

9. It’s not about more work,
but about working differently

10. • 16 Museum Transformers
• 200 Museum Activists
• Up to 10 Community Catalysts
What to expect?

11. MGS Grants

13. Contact details
Webpage:
www.museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk/delivering-change
Email:
deliveringchange@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk or
sheilaa@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk

14. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba
Workforce Inclusion Work
Ellie Muniandy
Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Officer
National Library of Scotland

15. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba
Heritage innovation Fund Workforce
Challenge Explore phase
Revealed the following in the heritage sector :
• Lack of workforce diversity
Failure to achieve inclusion because:
• Managers lack confidence to manage marginalised people and diverse teams
• Lack of commitment and support from senior leadership
• Processes and procedures implemented without corresponding culture change
• The workforce in the wider heritage sector, does not reflect the diversity of the
public it serves.

16. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba

17. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba
Heritage Innovation Fund Workforce
Challenge Test phase
Specialist EDI training and support for managers and HR professionals in order to:
• Create conditions to better support and retain marginalised workers
• Develop managerial confidence, attitude, awareness and skills
Through:
• Reflective sessions for managers
• Recognition of the needs of marginalised people
• Developing policies to aid retention
• Peer-to-peer and team coaching for Library Leadership Team

18. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba
As part of the culture change work at the library the first
big step we took was to hold a consultation with all staff
about the values they want to see and the values they
currently see, both negative and positive.
These workshops also addressed the new Code of
Conduct we are developing and gave staff an opportunity
to suggest what they think this should include.
We also discussed what happens when things go wrong?
How do we hold ourselves and others accountable?
This is really about conflict, how do we not shy away from
conflict and encourage constructive and transformative
approaches. Our aim is to develop a less punitive
approach as we acknowledge we are all on a learning
journey.
Values and
Behaviours work

19. National Library of Scotland
Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba
THANK YOU
Except for images or where otherwise stated this presentation is © National Library of Scotland and is licensed under the Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International Licence. To view a copy of this license, visit: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Contact information: E.Muniandy@nls.uk

20. Empire, Slavery and
Scotland’s Museums:
Anti-Racist Education
Mélina Valdelièvre (Education Scotland)

21. AREP: Anti-Racism in Education Programme
1. Education Leadership and Professional Learning
2. Diversity in the Teaching Profession and Education Workforce
3. Racism and Racist Incidents
4. Curriculum Reform
1.8% in 2023
4% by 2030

22. Anti-Racist Curriculum Principles
BREAKING THE MOULD:
Our Curriculum must be an Anti-Racist Curriculum
• Principles emerging from the Scottish Government’s Anti-Racism in Education
Programme (Curriculum Reform Workstream)
• The principles are aspirational, aimed to guide, support and challenge us all.
• A useful tool for moving us forward in our ongoing anti-racist learning and
leadership journeys.
Breaking the mould: Principles for an anti-racist curriculum | Resources | Education Scotland

23. ESSM RECOMMENDATION 2:
Museums should ensure anti-racism is embedded in their workplaces and public spaces.
Anti-Racist Curriculum Principle 16
Educators and leaders will demonstrate personal and collective
leadership across the education system, both in actively promoting
an anti-racist culture and in supporting people who experience
racism.

24. ESSM RECOMMENDATION 3:
Museums should involve the people of Scotland in shaping their work through co-production, to promote cultural democracy and
participation for all.
Anti-Racist Curriculum Principle 14
Educators and leaders will co-design and enact a curriculum
that takes learners’ lives and experiences as a starting point,
and actively source and introduce a diversity of
perspectives, texts, identities and voices.

25. ESSM RECOMMENDATION 4:
Museums should commit to research, interpret, and share the histories of Scotland’s links to empire, colonialism, and historic slavery.
Anti-Racist Curriculum Principle 2
Children and young people will understand and enquire into
Scotland’s role in historical world events, including trans-
Atlantic enslavement and colonial histories, and their
continuing impact today.

26. Programme for Government 2023-24
“Further advance inclusive education in our schools through our Anti-Racism in Education
Programme which will continue to:
• embed anti-racist practice and principles in initial and ongoing professional development
for teachers and educators,
• including the promotion of a decolonised curriculum which reflects diversity, social justice
and Scotland’s role in trans-Atlantic enslavement,
• as well as the development of robust measures for tackling racist incidents in schools.”

27. Inverclyde's Inclusive Curriculum

30. Scan the QR code
to ask a question
or visit slido.com and
enter code #2928 827
| Session one | 11:35 - 12:25
Connection
#StrategySymposium2024