Being curious, connected and collaborative enables me to support change.

My Curiosity & Practice

Working alongside museums and cultural organisations, I bring clarity, connection and direction to complexity.

My Journey

I created Janet Dugdale Consulting in 2024 to continue my museum and heritage work with clients and organisations across the UK.

From writing new histories as a teenager, my interest in our shared past has always centred on people.

My practice has evolved through developing strong partnerships, enabling voices to be heard and by creating opportunities for participation.

I will

respond to your unique situation in imaginative ways
bring clear thinking and clarity to your project / organisation
be approachable, empathetic and aligned
share an outside, independent view
use a mentoring and coaching approach
connect your project / organisation with relevant ideas, people and strategies

I work with and for museums, heritage and cultural organisations to support them to develop, change and thrive by continuing to have a positive outcomes for people and place.

PURPOSE-LED

COLLABORATIVE

IMAGINATIVE

PRAGMATIC

EMPOWERING

CURIOUS

Background

I work nationally from my base in Liverpool.

Liverpool is full of fascinating places, festivals and cultural events - there's always something to explore.

Prior to creating Janet Dugdale Consulting in 2024 I was an Executive Director (Museums & Participation) at National Museums Liverpool. From 2020 this included being project sponsor for the Waterfront Transformation Project - a big plan for a decade of change with the reimagining of the International Slavery Museum at its heart.

I joined National Museums Liverpool in 1997 and soon headed the successful Museum of Liverpool Life. I went on to lead the interpretation and engagement teams creating the Museum of Liverpool. This major city history museum opened under my directorship in 2011 and won the Council of Europe Museum Prize in 2013 for ‘exemplary recognition of human rights in museum practice’.

Between 2017 and 2024, I was also a Director on the Board of Royal Albert Dock Liverpool Ltd, a major heritage site of Grade I listed buildings with multiple tenants, stakeholders and users.

My career started in Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit cataloguing maps which fuelled my interest in place. This was followed by the Lake District Art Gallery & Museum Trust (now Lakeland Arts) where I ran the Museum of Lakeland Life and Industry and was a founding member of Kendal Oral History Society. After a year of global travel, I moved to the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent to work as a community historian and curator before moving to Liverpool.

Current Roles

My Practice

I am an independent consultant working with and for museums, heritage and culture.

Non-exec roles

Trustee of the Museums Association (where I chair the Beecroft Bequest Committee and the Ethics Committee)
Member of the Designation Panel for Arts Council England
Board member at the Centre for Port & Maritime History

Memberships

Fellow of the Museums Association (FMA)
Associate Partner of the Heritage Network
Member of ICOM UK (with international committee: CAMOC – City Museums)
Member of Professional Liverpool

Honorary roles & awards

Honorary Research Fellow of the Research Centre for Museums & Galleries, University of Leicester
Honorary Fellow of Liverpool John Moores University
‘Honorary Scouser’ for representing Liverpool when the city celebrated being European Capital of Culture