Statue of Sir Robert Peel in Piccadilly Gardens / Image: David Dixon via Geograph
Manchester Council is reaching out to the public for feedback on local statues, monuments and memorials as part of a review into the city’s public spaces.
The consultation has been launched to get residents’ input to ensure that local artwork accurately tells the “complete story of Manchester’s history and the diverse communities that have made the city what it is today”.
Feedback will be used to determine a future approach on the commissioning and display of art across Manchester.
Debate over which historical figures should be celebrated in England’s public spaces was reignited during the course of 2020 in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests.
A domino effect was set in motion by a group of demonstrators in Bristol who toppled the statue of slave trader Edward Colston and rolled it into the harbour; placing fresh scrutiny on other monuments across the country.
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In June 2020, a petition was launched to remove the statue of Sir Robert Peel – two-time Prime Minister and founder of the British police – from Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens as part of a demand for police reform.
Hundreds of people subsequently signed a counter-petition in response.
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Statue of Emmeline Pankhurst in St Peter’s Square / Image: Wikipedia
Councillor Luthfur Rahman OBE, Executive Member for Culture, Skills and Leisure said: “It’s become clear over the last year that the time is now right for a re-evaluation of how Manchester’s history and its people are reflected in our public spaces.”
He did, however, emphasise that the process was not about eradicating the past or “glossing over any uncomfortable truths” but “understanding our history and heritage, and the context around it.”
The councillor added: “Whilst we’re not setting out to tear things down, at the same time it’s important we recognise the impact that choices past and present on what’s displayed in the city, can and do have on people living, working, or visiting here.
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“It’s important too that we make sure local residents see the best of themselves and their own communities’ achievements and stories reflected as they look around them – and for us all to learn from and to share their stories and successes.”
In addition to the Council’s online consultation, Manchester Histories will also be hosting virtual workshop sessions on March 10 to explore the subject further – featuring special guest speakers such as author Gary Younge and Professor of the History of Africa and the African Diaspora at University of Chichester Hakim Adi.
Karen Shannon, Chief Executive Officer, Manchester Histories, said: “This important review of Manchester’s statues and monuments will provide the opportunity for people to have their say to improve our understanding of our collective or contested histories, and to better recognise the role of the diverse communities and individuals across the city.
“We hope it will enable us start to consider how we would want to represent our city’s heritage in the future.”
Funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the 14 national museums of the UK are all located in England – including the Imperial War Museum North, and the Science and Industry Museum in our region – and free entry to was first introduced all the way back in 2001, with millions of visitors having benefitted since.
National museums are said to add more than £1 billion a year to the economy, and bring in visitors from all over the world.
In fact, seven of the UK’s 10 most visited museums are national museums, and 7.1 million people visited the Natural History Museum and 6.4 million visited the British Museum in 2025 alone.
The Government has announced that all national museums in the UK will remain free for everyone to visit / Credit: Science Museum Group | Wikimedia Commons
Earlier this year though, the Government committed to working with local leaders and the museum and tourism sectors to explore whether charging overseas visitors could help museums’ finances.
But following this, it’s now believed that charging could deter visitors, and that the impacts and benefits would ‘not be felt equally’ across the sector.
Instead, the free entry will be funded by the £1.5 billion Arts Everywhere Fund – which is providing £760 million for museums – while £600 million of infrastructure funding is supporting national museums and DCMS-sponsored cultural organisations.
The latter funding will be used to address critical maintenance and works to estates, and enable institutions to deliver on their commitments to share collections with visitors from around the world.
A further £160 million is coming from The Museum Estates and Development Fund to help museums tackle maintenance backlogs.
On top of that, the Government will work with Arts Council to develop a long-term strategic plan for the future of museums.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
News
Man City release statement after being found guilty of all charges related to Premier League’s financial rules
Emily Sergeant
Manchester City has finally broken its silence after being found guilty all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules.
Yesterday, the Premier League released a formal statement confirming that an independent Commission had found Manchester City guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period.
On top of that, the club was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors during the nine-season period – which were part of a disguised funding scheme, with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Following this report being published yesterday, Manchester City has now finally released a statement of its own, breaking its silence on the topic for the first time since the news broke last Friday.
The statement reads in full: “Manchester City FC is both disappointed and surprised by the opinion of the Premier League Commission, that has been published today.
“The Club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all of its positions, relating to this case. The Club will therefore be relentless, and where necessary proactive, in any and all appropriate regulatory and legal forums.
“The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements uncompleted. Manchester City FC will now pursue the appeal avenues open to it, on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe.
“The Club has diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis that the Premier League Board and Executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence.
“The Club is obviously restricted in what it can say further until all future proceedings are complete.”
The Manc -
8th February 2021 
