MENTORING & CRITICAL FRIEND

Claire Adler can:

  • Advise museums, heritage sites, cultural organisations and community groups on best practice in museum, science centres and heritage learning through mentoring, researching and training.

  • Work with museums, heritage sites, cultural organisations and community groups as their Critical Friend to question why and how they are developing their projects.

  • Mentor organisations run by paid staff and volunteers through the process of developing Round 1 and Round 2 NLHF projects, from under £10,000 to over £10 million.

  • Work with organisations as a Critical Friend to ask provocative questions and give an unbiased outside view of a project or organisation.

Recent Work:

I have been an Expert Adviser for Access and Learning for the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF), since 2004. I have assessed, mentored and monitored projects from inception to final report from small community based projects to multi-million pound redevelopments of National Museums and Art Galleries.  I have worked on over 60 projects for NNLHF to ensure that they are making the most of all of their resources and opportunities, including National Maritime Museum, British Council, Newport Transporter Bridge, SHAPE Arts, Harwich Electric Palace Cinema and the Centre for Indian Classical Dance’s Oral History Project.

Mentor and Monitor for the National Lottery Heritage Fund

Wellcome appointed me as the monitor and mentor for Dundee Science Centre as part of their Inspiring Science Fund funding.  From 2019 - 2022 I worked with Dundee Science Centre to both establish best practice in community engagement in a science centre and also to work as a critical friend and sounding board throughout the Covid 19 pandemic.  As a result Dundee Science Centre reopened in 2021 a far more resilient and relevant organisation than it was at the beginning of the pandemic.  The relationship worked so well that Dundee Science Centre have kept me on as their Critical Friend after the Wellcome funding finished.

Project Monitor/ Mentor for Wellcome for their Inspiring Science Fund for Dundee Science Centre

Stevenage Museum asked me to work as their Critical Friend to help them understand what was needed by the staff, volunteers, community and collections for a new site in the redeveloped town centre.  This has included consulting stakeholders, commenting on a Business Plan and Audience Development Plan and training staff across the council in consultation methodologies.

Stevenage Museum

Working with Sweet Patootee Arts CIO as a Critical Friend to develop an NLHF project to support the delivery of their video installation, TURNING POINT, which are four short drama stories from Barbados and Jamaica in 1920.  The project will work with different audiences to understand the history of stories and the contemporary impacts.

Sweet Patootee

Temple Newsam House, Farm and Estate

Working with Anna Salaman as Community Engagement Mentors for Temple Newsam House, Farm and Estate as part of their NLHF Resilience Grant, to think about community engagement and how the diverse site can be developed for the future. 

Mentor for Round 1 and Round 2 NLHF application St Leonard’s Church, Flamstead, Bedfordshire.  Working with a group of volunteers to help them understand NLHF’s processes and also to develop a project that is relevant and responsive to their local communities

St Leonard’s Church, Flamstead

South London Gallery

Critical Friend for the South London Gallery, to help them deliver a successful Activity Plan as part of their Round 2 NLHF project.

Critical Friend for Headway Cambridgeshire, NHS Trust, to develop a successful oral history project about the history of the treatment of people with head injuries and the history of Headway’s current site.

Headway Cambridgeshire

Hackney Museum

Critical Friend for Hackney Museum in the successful development and delivery of their second stage NLHF bid for the Cultural Olympiad.