Caithness Horizons Museum To Close Today Due To Financial Difficulties

21st February 2019

Photo Gallery

Budget cuts are beginning to bite harder as funding reduces across several sectors. Caithness Horizons in Thurso will be closed down later today - Thursday 21 February 2019 - due to financial difficulties.

The operators of the museum and art gallery said increasing running costs and reduced income had made the running of the site "unsustainable". Highland council and Dounreay had supplied funding since it opened

The museum opened in 2008 with en exhibition room the former Dounreay site museum and various displays and collection as well as an art exhibition room

In a statement, management thanked everyone who had supported the museum over the last 11 years.

The statement went on: "This is a particularly difficult announcement for our remaining staff and we want to pay tribute to everyone who has gone above and beyond to try and make it a success, whether staff or volunteer, past or present.

"Over the years, the Caithness Horizons team has worked hard to ensure that our local culture and history has been shared."

Highland Council still owns the museum's former town hall premises.

Talks with the council are onoing.

Photo Gallery shows photos from the opening day in 2008.

In January 2018 - Caithness Horizons, which tells the story of the county of Caithness from 416 million years ago to the present day, has deleted its manager post and cut its curator's hours from 40 to 20 hours a week in anticipation of funding cuts.

The independent museum, in Thurso, Scotland, received £90,000 from the Highland Council, and £95,000 from Dounreay (the history of the Dounreay Nuclear Research Establishment is told in the museum) in 2017-18, towards its overall budget of £345,000.

Its budget for 2018-19 is £337,000. It has secured a commitment from Dounreay to fund £75,000 towards this and is hoping the council will match that amount.

Before Christmas the museum's manager took voluntary redundancy and the curator's hours were cut as part of a commercial operating plan requested by the museum's funders.