•  Birmingham Citizens’ Jury has been shortlisted for the Best Museums Change Lives Project for inspiring engagement, reflection and debate.

• The jury produced a set of recommendations on the future of the city’s museums for Birmingham Museums Trust.

• Winners will be announced at the Museums Association conference in Cardiff on 7 October.

A project to directly involve members of the local public in deciding the future of Birmingham’s museums has been shortlisted for the Museums Change Lives Awards.

The awards celebrate the achievements of museums that are making a difference to the lives of their audiences and communities across the UK.

Birmingham Citizens’ Jury has been shortlisted for the Best Museums Change Lives Project under the theme ‘Inspiring Engagement, Reflection and Debate’.

The citizens’ jury was brought together to answer the question: ‘What does Birmingham need and want from its museums, now and in the future; and what should Birmingham Museums Trust do to make these things happen?’

Community interest company Shared Future was commissioned to run the process, which saw 5,000 letters sent to households across the Birmingham Metropolitan Area, from which 28 participants were selected to broadly reflect the demographics of the city.

The participants met for 30 hours across three evenings online and three full days in-person, hearing from 12 expert commentators, making three exhibition visits and sharing their own opinions and lived experience.

The jury produced a series of recommendations covering funding and marketing, community engagement and collaboration, exploring diverse perspectives, and new audiences, accessibility and inclusivity.

Zak Mensah and Sara Wajid, co-chief executives of Birmingham Museums Trust, said:

“We are delighted to have been shortlisted for this award and that the Birmingham Citizens’ Jury project has been recognised for its important and ground-breaking work with the communities we serve to inspire engagement, reflection and debate.

"We're grateful to the support of Mark O'Neill, Lucy Reid, Shared Future, and of course our jury members, as well as many others who supported in some way."

This year’s awards will take place at Sain Ffagan Amgueddfa Werin Cymru – St Fagans National Museum of History, Cardiff on Tuesday 7 October 2025 as part of the Museums Association’s annual conference.

The awards have four categories:

The Equitable Partnership Award recognises the best example of a museum and community partner(s) working together equitably to achieve shared goals.

The Best Museums Change Lives Project Award recognises the best project in the past year that reflects one or more of the themes of the Museums Association’s Museums Change Lives campaign: Promoting Health and Wellbeing; Creating Better Places; and Inspiring Engagement, Reflection and Debate.

The Best Small Museum Project Award recognises the best project at museums with an annual turnover of less than £320,000.

The Radical Changemaker Award recognises the achievements of an individual in promoting one or more of the themes of the Museums Change Lives campaign in their museum.