About Us

Who we are and what we do
NWFed is here to support everyone working or volunteering, or with a professional interest in, museums, art galleries and heritage organisations in the North West and Isle of Man.
We support your professional development, advocate for your work and strengthen you and your museums through partnerships, training and networking, including our In Conversation and Museum Basics events. We are led by our members, including museums, galleries and heritage organisations, and individuals from across the museum workforce.
Find out how to join NWFed.
Our History
NWFed (formerly the North West Federation of Museums and Art Galleries) is one of ten museum federations in the UK and was the first to be founded in 1927.
We are a company limited by guarantee and have been a charity since 2009. We remain a grassroots organisation, led by our members.
We are managed by a board of trustees from varied museum and heritage backgrounds. We offer regular opportunities for members to get involved in running NWFed by joining our board and to support our programme by contributing expertise and experience to our professional development events.
Our Members
Our current institutional members are:
- Astley Hall
- The Atkinson
- Blackburn Museum & Art Gallery
- Bolton Museum
- Craven District Council
- Gallery Oldham
- Greater Manchester Police Museum,
- Harris Museum, Art Gallery & Library
- Imperial War Museum North
- Lancashire County Council Museums
- The Lowry
- Macclesfield Museums
- Manchester Art Gallery
- Manchester Historic Buildings Trust (Elizabeth Gaskell House)
- Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections
- Manchester Museum (University of Manchester)
- National Football Museum
- National Museums Liverpool
- People’s History Museum
- Prescot Museum
- Ribchester Fort
- Salford Museum
- Tameside District Council
- Warrington Museum
- West Cheshire Museums
- West Kirby Museum
A warm welcome to our newest members:
- Eureka! The National Children’s Museum
- Hat Works Museum
- Quaker Tapestry Museum,
- Peter Scott Gallery (Lancaster Arts)
Our Partners

We work with regional and national partners to support our work, including:
- Museum Development North West
- Museums Association
- The Whitworth, which provides our company address:
- c/o Whitworth Art Gallery, Oxford Road, Manchester M15 6ER
Find out more about NWFed

In Conversation
Our In Conversation events take place in person and online, covering key current issues in the sector. You’ll hear from expert speakers with inspiring case studies, and have the chance to contribute your expertise too.

Museum Basics
Museums Basics are focused, small group training events covering critical practical museum knowledge, like object marking and labelling, packing and storage, and disaster planning.