top of page
the big shed-7.jpg

Stakeholder comms: Laying the Foundations

Client

Birmingham Museums Trust

Location

Birmingham, UK

Year

2025

The brief

​

"This is therefore an unapologetically ambitious plan to invest in the city’s greatest cultural asset, to create a world class museum service, which can be at the forefront of making Birmingham a great place to live, work, play and visit. And even beyond this, to deliver our mission as part of the wider arts and culture sector." 

Sara Wajid and Zak Mensah, Co-CEOs Birmingham Museums Trust

Birmingham Museums Trust had an audacious vision: to become the first large museums service in the world with truly representative audiences that reflect the super-diverse city Birmingham has become. The first phase of this once-in-a-generation transformation, Laying the Foundations, needed a communications and engagement strategy that would bring staff, volunteers, trustees, funders, partners and stakeholders on the journey. The stakes were high: without compelling, clear communication, the funding, partnerships and organisational buy-in needed to deliver radical change simply wouldn't materialise.

The Action

Working closely with BMT's Director of Transformation, David Salmon Consulting distilled complex source material including the innovative, sector leading Citizens' Jury, a new business plan, audience insights and Theory of Change, into a coherent set of messages and a suite of strategy documents fit for multiple audiences.

David Salmon Consulting mapped the full stakeholder landscape, from internal staff and volunteers through to funders, governmental bodies, opinion formers and national partners, and built a targeted communications plan for each group.​ David also sourced a copywriter to help form the final public facing strategy document into a consistent, engaging asset.

​Internally, David Salmon Consulting designed and helped deliver a full staff and volunteer launch day, supported by FAQs and briefing materials to ensure everyone felt informed and could play a role in the transformation.

Externally, David Salmon Consulting led digital communications across the website, press and PR, B2B channels and social media with regular updates to keep stakeholders engaged and demonstrate transparency throughout.

The Results

  • The launch landed with exceptional engagement: 90% of staff and volunteers attended the launch day event. Workshops, Q+A sessions and ongoing internal comms were planned in to sustain and deepen engagement over time.

  • Coverage was achieved in local, regional and sector press.

  • BMT has gone on to gain wide recognition as a leader in sector innovation, winning the Sector Impact Award at the Museums + Heritage Show 2025 and being selected to host the Museums Association Conference 2026. 

  • A four-year research partnership — Addressing the Museum Attendance and Benefit Gap
    — has also been secured, bringing together Birmingham Museums Trust, University of Birmingham, UCL and multiple sector partners to develop evidence-based approaches to widening participation.

  • Following the successful strategy launch, a major public fundraising campaign,Your Museums, Your Move: It Takes a City to Save a Story, with a target of raising at least £2 million over two years to protect the city's cultural heritage.

​

See the strategy at https://www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/about/what-we-do/our-strategy

​

​Find out more about the award-winning Citizen's Jury: https://www.birminghammuseums.org.uk/about/what-we-do/citizens-jury

bottom of page