How the Scheme is funded.
Funding 1997-2003
1997-1999
Starting in September 1997, Department of Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) (then the Department of National Heritage) awarded funding for a programme of pilot schemes with Finds Liaison Officers (FLOs) to promote the voluntary recording of archaeological objects in five regions of England. A sixth post co-ordinating the schemes was funded by the British Museum (BM) for two years.
Funding was channelled through Re:source (The Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries, which is now the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council or MLA).
1999-2001
Following the establishment of the pilot schemes, bids were successfully put forward to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to fund a further five FLO posts plus an Outreach Officer post for eighteen months, starting from January-March 1999. The DCMS agreed to fund the existing posts during this period.
2001-2003
Shortly after funding was awarded for 1999-2001, further funding was applied for from the HLF to establish a comprehensive national scheme covering the whole of England and Wales.
However, before awarding funding to extend the scheme nationally, the HLF required an independent evaluation of the work of the scheme and its impact. This delayed the progression of the application considerably and as an interim measure, while the evaluation was being undertaken, funding was secured from the DCMS and the HLF for the existing posts until September 2001.
The HLF then questioned the long-term sustainability of such an ambitious scheme, particularly in consideration of its funding. While a decision was being reached, funding for the existing posts was provided once more by the DCMS, as an interim measure, until March 2003.
A breakdown of funding for 1997-2003 is provided below:
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02> | 2002-03 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DCMS | £55k | £100k | £100k | £250k | £252k | £426k |
| BM | £12.5k | £14.5k | £15k | - | - | - |
| HLF | - | - | £256k | - | £190k | - |
| Total | £180,000 | £114,500 | £371,000 | £250,000 | £442,000 | £426,000 |
Funding 2003-2006
The bid for a national scheme was eventually approved in 2002 and funding secured for a period of three years, staring April 2003 and ceasing at the end of March 2006.
The original grant statement said:
"Thousands of important archaeological finds unearthed each year by the public are to be preserved and used to broaden our understanding of history in a new project involving people throughout England and Wales . The Heritage Lottery Fund today (May 10) announces that it has awarded a grant of £2,493,000 to support the Portable Antiquities Scheme which involves museums and other organisations across England and Wales .
The project, titled `Finding our Past`, is led by Resource, the Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries. It will be a voluntary scheme for the recording of archaeological items found by members of the public. This information will be available as a resource for museums and other organisations to broaden public awareness of heritage through education, events and other activities, and to boost research into local and national history. The Portable Antiquities Scheme was established in 1997 and has been piloted through individual programmes in Hampshire, Somerset and Dorset , Northamptonshire, Suffolk , Wales and London , supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The new grant will now allow the scheme to be rolled out comprehensively throughout England and Wales . Resource is the lead organisation in a wider partnership that also involves English Heritage, the British Museum, the National Museums and Galleries of Wales and the Royal Commission for Ancient and Historical Monuments in Wales. The consortium will work with museums and organisations across England and Wales".
HLF support constituted around 60% of the project funding. Funding was also provided by the DCMS, MLA, the BM, the Royal Commission for Ancient Monuments Wales (RCAMW), English Heritage (EH) and from the local partner organisations hosting the Scheme posts.
Funding continued to be channelled through MLA.
A breakdown of funding contributions for 2003-6 is provided below:
| 2003-6 | |
| DCMS | £1,185,000 |
| BM | £45,041 |
| HLF | £2,493,000 |
| MLA | £62,357 |
| RCAMW | (contribution in kind to the value of) £3,091 |
| EH | (contribution in kind to the value of) £58,242 |
| Local Host Partners | £157,539 |
| Local Host Partners | (contribution in kind to the value of) £157,539 |
| Total | £4,161,808 |
Funding 2006 Onwards
2006-8
In 2004 a bid was put forward as part of the Government's Spending Review 2005-8 to fund the nationwide scheme network in full. In December 2004, the DCMS announced that starting in April 2006, the scheme would be funded in full by the DCMS until the end of March 2008.
The announcement was particularly significant as it was the first time that the Government agreed to fund the full national Scheme and it followed Estelle Morris's statement in the House of Commons on 26 May 2004 saying " I accept that if the Scheme is to continue, the DCMS core budget must pick it up ."
Funding contributions were also provided by the BM and by the local partner organisations hosting the Scheme posts.
Funding was to be channelled through MLA, but administered by the BM. This coincided with the scheme central unit becoming an official department of the BM in April 2006, the Department of Portable Antiquities and Treasure .
A breakdown of funding for 2006-8 is provided below:
| 2006-7 | 2007-8 | Total 2006-8 | |
| DCMS | £1,260,000 | £1,300,000 | £2,560,000 |
| BM | £51,115 | £18,493* | £69,608 |
| Local Host Partners | £51,155.99 | £54,120.44 | £105,276 |
| Total | £1,362,271 | £1,372,613 | £2,734,884 |
* (plus a further allocation for central unit salary costs)
Breakdown of Scheme Funding 1997-2008
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-6 | 2006-8 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DCMS | £55k | £100k | £100k | £250k | £252k | £426k | £1,185,000 | £2,560,000 | £4,928,000 |
| BM | £12.5k | £14.5k | £15k | - | - | - | £45,041 | £69,608 | £269,149 |
| HLF | - | - | £256k | - | £190k | - | £2,493,000 | - | £2,939,000 |
| MLA | - | - | - | - | - | - | £62,357 | - | £62,357 |
| RCAMW | - | - | - | - | - | - | £3,091 | - | £3,091 |
| EH | - | - | - | - | - | - | £58,242 | - | £58,242 |
| Local Hosts | - | - | - | - | - | - | £157,539 | £105,276 | £262,815 |
| Local Hosts | - | - | - | - | - | - | £157,539 | - | £157,539 |
| Total | £180k | £114.5k | £371k | £250k | £442k | £426k | £4,161,808 | £2,734,884 | £8,680,192 |
Grant Claiming Arrangements
Currently, the BM drawdown from MLA takes place bi-annually, following the submission of projection of costs for the forthcoming six-month period, a financial statement for the preceding six-month period and a written progress report.
Each partner organisation hosting a scheme post was awarded a part of the funding to support the running of that post. The award was broken down into three budget headings ( Salary Costs , Travel & Subsistence and Other Costs ) to which a specific sum was allocated.
Every quarter, each partner organisation compiles a retrospective claim detailing all expenditure made towards the running of the Scheme for that quarter. The claim is sent to the BM, who arrange reimbursement via BACS transfer.
Future Funding
A bid full funding of the national scheme at its current level is currently being prepared for the Government Spending Review 2008-2011.
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