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Social Policy and Cultural Services: A Study of Scottish Border Museums as Implementers of Social Inclusion

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 July 2009

Vikki McCall
Vikki McCall*
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Social Science, University of Stirling E-mail: vikki.mccall1@stir.ac.uk
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Abstract

This article examines the findings of an exploratory case study based on local authority museums in the Scottish Borders to assess the impact of social inclusion policies from the Scottish Parliament. Taken from museum curators' perspectives, the findings suggest that social inclusion policies have not filtered through the system to reach the curators due to unclear government policy and confusion regarding terminology, strategy and guidelines. Curators found it difficult to engage with social inclusion discourse, despite employing socially inclusive actions in everyday practice. The relationship between the local community and museum was seen to be unique and multi-layered, with a perceived dimension of community ownership, which has implications for social policy on central, local and individual levels.

Type
Articles
Information
Social Policy and Society , Volume 8 , Issue 3 , July 2009 , pp. 319 - 331
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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