Starmer orders new search for V&A chair

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has re-started the process of appointing a new chair for V&A after earlier attempts to fill the post under the previous government were aborted amid claims of political interference.

Applications to become chair of V&A close on 23 October 2024, with the interview process expected to conclude on 25 November 2024.

“The Prime Minister wishes to appoint a new chair to the Victoria and Albert Museum,” a notice advertising the position, published today (9 October), states.

“This is an exciting opportunity to use your skills to benefit a family of museums dedicated to the power of creativity.”

The successful candidate will join the museum as it begins a new strategy to transition into a multisite organisation while still recovering from the pandemic.

V&A’s job application pack says the new chair will need to demonstrate “robust and inclusive leadership to support this growth and change” and should be “of significant standing, with a noteworthy background in a creative, commercial or academic field”.

“They will act as an ambassador for the museum to government, key industry contacts, supporters and donors, and must therefore demonstrate excellent communication and relationship-building skills within a complex environment.” 

V&A has been without a permanent chair since 1 November 2023 when Nicholas Coleridge stepped down after two terms to lead Historic Royal Palaces and become provost-elect of Eton College. Nigel Webb was installed as the museum’s interim chair.

The search for a permanent successor was launched in April 2023, with interviews scheduled for early July.

However, The Observer has previously reported that DCMS ordered a restart of the recruitment process after Samir Shah, thought to be the frontrunner for the post, dropped out in the summer of 2023 to accept the opportunity to chair the BBC instead.

Earlier this year, DCMS put forward two candidates to former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak: Sarah Sands, former BBC Today programme editor, and Nigel Newton, founder of publisher Bloomsbury, but the process was halted again when the general election was called in May.

‘Ground to a halt’

“The whole thing has ground to a halt because of its complexity,” director of the V&A Tristram Hunt told The Observer.

An executive non-departmental public body sponsored by DCMS, V&A operates at arm’s length from government and is governed by a board of trustees appointed by the Prime Minister.

For the latest application round for the role of V&A chair prospective candidates will be assessed by an advisory panel consisting of Ruth Hannant and Polly Payne, Directors General, Policy, DCMS Panel Chair, Alan Coppin, Senior Independent Panel Member and John Booth, Additional Panel Member.

Ministers will be consulted on the panel’s recommended interview shortlist and will make the final decision on the appointment. 

There have been suggestions that, under the previous government, the process of appointing arts, media and sports boards involved special advisers and the Cabinet Office before being handed to Downing Street, leading to allegations of cronyism and a claimed backlog of more than 100 unfilled posts.

On the V&A appointment process, Hunt said, “Only the final selection should be the minister.”

Sir John Tusa, former head of BBC World Service and Barbican Centre, said of the protracted role recruitment: “Why is there any political role in deciding a trustee or chair?”

“Great national arts institutions should not be party political playthings for giving favours to cronies.”

During Coleridge’s tenure at V&A, the board came under criticism for blurring the boundaries between personal and charitable interests when he auctioned a private tour of the museum to raise funds for the Conservative Party, while trustee Ben Elliot, former co-chair of the Conservative Party, hosted events at the V&A on behalf of his business.