Tāmaki Paenga Hira–Auckland War Memorial Museum recently published its annual report for 2014/2015 – a year which was marked by significant WWI Centenary commemorative programmes and the celebration of Auckland’s 175th anniversary with a home-grown exhibition, Taku Tāmaki Auckland Stories.
Auckland Museum Director Roy Clare says, “As we conclude the second year of delivering our long-term strategic plan, Future Museum, we have continued to deliver public value for the ever-growing and increasingly diverse people of Tāmaki Makaurau.”
Double-digit growth in 2014/15
More people each year are engaging with Auckland Museum onsite, offsite in the community, and online.
While overall visitation onsite grew to 854,177 visits, the number of Auckland adults visiting experienced double digit growth of 17 per cent.
More children are visiting the museum, with growth of 16 per cent on prior year. The number of school-aged children attending school programmes on site increased by 22 per cent.
Visitors enjoy exhibition variety
Over 135,000 visitors attended the WOW® World of WearableArt™ inaugural international touring exhibition.
Taku Tāmaki Auckland Stories was launched in May to celebrate Auckland’s 175th Anniversary eliciting high interest from Auckland families – a key exhibition audience. Overall visitor satisfaction for the year was 99 per cent.
The launch of Collections Online in June saw over one million collection records made available to the public online which has contributed to a 91 per cent growth in online visitors to the museum’s website.
He Toa Taumata Rau, the Online Cenotaph was also relaunched as part of the centenary period with 153,636 virtual poppies laid as part of remembrance of New Zealand service people. An estimated 34,000 people attended the Anzac Day dawn ceremony supported by the museum in partnership with Auckland Council.
A green outlook
Committed to delivering a sustainable foundation, the museum produced its best self-generated revenue results in a decade of performance, and 26,849 volunteer hours were contributed to deliver a range of both customer-facing and behind-the-scenes activities.
Further progress has been made in creating a ‘green’ museum with carbon emissions reduced a further 19 per cent on prior year.
To illustrate the depth and breadth of the activity the museum undertakes on behalf of the wider Auckland community, this year’s annual report invites readers to explore an interactive overview of ‘10 days in the life of Auckland Museum,’ highlighting how each of the day’s activities aligns with the museum’s strategic goals and the aspirations of the city it serves.
The Draft Annual Plan 2016/2017 will be published in November for public submissions.
Council-controlled organisation Regional Facilities Auckland (RFA) advises Auckland Council on the levy setting and governance for Auckland Museum.
Governed by a Trust Board created under an act of parliament in 1996, the museum receives no funding from central government. It is funded by Auckland ratepayers and from revenue generated by the museum itself. It also receives generous support from corporate sponsors, charitable trusts and private individuals.
