Public Houses Conference

Local authorities care for some of the UK’s most significant historic house museums. While these are often a source of pride and a resource for the local population, museums managed by local authorities are subject to the vagaries of changing civic priorities, unique governance structures and the perpetual challenge of continued levels of funding.

Often without the clear mission of historic houses run by conservation and heritage charities or privately owned counterparts, houses owned and run by local authorities have multiple responsibilities. From accountability to local voters, to the management and governance of the buildings and contents, as well as the greenspaces that often surround historic houses.

Alongside these stewardship pressures, local authority historic houses navigate a complex, changing landscape of priorities, which require new forms of expertise, new modes of presentation and interpretation. With increasing emphasis on partnership working, more sustainable alternative uses, ‘public entrepreneurship’, community engagement, and heritage driven regeneration, the purpose and practice of civic custodianship is being redefined and reimagined.

In 2024, the first Public Houses Conference took place. A collaboration between Leeds City Council and the University of Leeds, supported by the Paul Mellon Foundation, it was hosted at Temple Newsam House, itself recently celebrating 100 years as a museum run by a local authority. The conference brought together practitioners, scholars, and policy makers to explore what it means to be a publicly owned and managed historic house museum in the 21st century, and what the future might hold.