The Museum Association have announced the shortlist for the Museums Change Lives Awards 2020. The awards celebrate the achievements of museums and individuals that have made an impact on the lives of their audiences and communities.

The winners will be announced at a virtual ceremony at 1.20pm on Thursday 5 November as part of our annual conference – free to attend for all Museums Association members. This year’s awards have four categories, including a new award for the Best Lockdown Project, which recognises the best museum responses to the coronavirus crisis.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 MA’s Museums Change Lives campaign: Promoting Health and Wellbeing; Creating Better Places; and Inspiring Engagement, Reflection and Debate. The Best Small Museum Project 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 Museums Change Lives in their museum

Norma Gregory, heritage leader and coordinator of the Black Miners Museum Project, has been shortlisted in the category of Radical Changemaker and states: “This is a amazing achievement milestone and celebration for the work over many years, preserving and sharing the heritage of diverse communities in mining history. We share this success with all miners, living and deceased and will continue working in partnerships with museums helping to re-shape and transform interpretations in industrial heritage museums across in UK and overseas.”