ABSTRACT
There are and always have been a substantial number of museums in Britain that are outside the established pattern of funding and management. This museum establishment has for many years consisted of two main groups, both financed almost entirely from public funds. The national museums derive their income in the main from Central Government, although it reaches them through a variety of channels. Local Authority museums are run and funded by Local Government, usually through committees of District or County Councils. Outside these two major groups are, for example, university museums, most regimental museums, and what in recent years have come to be called independent museums. It is this latter group that is considered in this chapter. There are thought to be about 1500 independent museums in Britain.
