Esme Ward is an English museum professional with an interest in public learning and engagement. Esme Ward was appointed as Director of

Manchester Museum Manchester Museum is a museum displaying works of archaeology, anthropology and natural history and is owned by the University of Manchester, in England. Sited on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road (A34 road, A34) at the heart of the university's group ...

in April 2018. She is the first woman to hold the role in the history of the museum, which was founded in 1867. Prior to her appointment, she was Head of Learning Engagement at

and

the Whitworth The Whitworth is an art gallery in Manchester, England, containing over 60,000 items in its collection. The gallery is located in Whitworth Park and is part of the University of Manchester. In 2015, the Whitworth reopened after it was transfor ...

, where she led the growth of audiences and programmes, to include award-winning early years, health and culture and age friendly work. For several years, she worked alongside

Maria Balshaw Maria Jane Balshaw CBE (born 24 January 1970) is director of the Tate art museums and galleries. The appointment was confirmed by Theresa May, the UK Prime Minister at the time, on 16 January 2017, making Balshaw the first female director of ...

on the £15 million transformation of

. In 2016–17 she was a Fellow on the

Clore Leadership Programme The Clore Duffield Foundation is a registered charity in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 2000 by the merger of two charitable foundations, the Clore Foundation of Charles Clore and his daughter's Vivien Duffield Foundation. Formation After ...

, exploring social and civic purpose, leadership and the future of museums. Her placement was with the

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

, exploring how to catalyse and support community heritage and activism. Her career has been driven by learning and social purpose with a longstanding commitment to make museums more inclusive and relevant to a wider audience. She started her career at

Dulwich Picture Gallery Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, south London. It opened to the public in 1817 and was designed by the Regency architect Sir John Soane. His design was recognized for its innovative and influential method of illumination f ...

and the V&A before moving north and working as a freelance educator with the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

and regional museum services. In 1998 she set up the Whitworth’s education service and over the next decade, developed audiences, exhibitions and teaching at all levels. Since 2005, she has taught MA module on Creative Learning and Museology at the Institute for Cultural Practice at the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

. Her degree is in History, with an MA in French Revolutionary Culture and Theory, from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. Ward is the Strategic Lead (Culture) for Age Friendly Manchester and the Greater Manchester Ageing Hub, and writes and speaks about age-friendly culture and the social purpose and future of museums, both internationally and at home. She sits on several national boards and networks, including Age Friendly Museums Network and was one of the expert authors on the Prime Minister’s Champion Group on the ''Arts Guide to Dementia Friendly Culture.'' She is co-curator of the Arts and Health programme at the forthcoming World Health Congress 2019–20.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Esme Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Directors of museums in the United Kingdom British women museum directors Manchester Museum people