20/10/2026
It's . Celebrated every 5 years, it's a day to remember the importance of reliable official statistics. The Government's Department for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport recently released statistics about how often people visit museums or galleries, and it's encouraging to see that across England, 42% of adults have visited one in the last 12 months. Unfortunately, around here we are lagging behind! Locally, 41% of residents in Colchester or Chelmsford and 40% in Maldon have visited a museum or gallery, but that falls to 33% in Basildon, 31% in Thurrock and 30% in Castle Point. Only Southenders buck the trend with 44%. There are some fantastic museums and galleries in the area (including us, of course!), so let's see if we can improve those statistics for next time!
