Derby Museums Trust is delighted to announce that they have appointed a new Executive Director. Tony Butler will be the new leader of Derby Museums.
Peter Smith, Chairman of Derby Museums Trust, said “I am delighted that Tony is joining us. I’m confident that he will lead the service to the next stage and deliver the many exciting plans for the Museum, which include the reopening of the ground floor of the Silk Mill in October.
“Tony has such a great understanding of what makes a great customer experience, and his ethos is just what we are looking for. I would also like to say a massive thank you to Nick Dodd, who has been the interim Executive Director since February of this year. Nick’s dedication and hard work has ensured that the Museum has gone from strength to strength.”
Tony has been working in museums since 1997 and has been director of the Museum of Anglian Life (MEAL) since 2004. During this time he has transformed the organisation into one which is leading developments in social and cultural enterprise in the UK’s independent museum sector.
In 2009 he was named a recipient of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation Breakthrough Fund and founded the Happy Museum programme.
This initiative has supported 22 museums in England and Wales to explore how they can improve people’s well-being and contribute to an environmentally sustainable future. The initiative has garnered significant international interest, in particular in Scandinavia and North America.
He currently lives in rural Suffolk with his partner of 12 years and their two children.
Speaking about his new appointment, Tony says:
“I am hugely looking forward to leading the team at Derby Museums and working with some outstanding collections.
“The Joseph Wright collection should project Derby’s significant artistic and scientific heritage both in the UK and internationally. Developments at the Silk Mill will be a fantastic way for local people not only to get near to their industrial heritage but also to make history.
“Museums have a powerful role to help us look at the world differently, to know where we have come from and to help us shape a society in which we want to live.”
