Image: Pest Partners film still - Pests at lunch © South West Museum Development, 2021
South West Museum Development has published a 5-minute animation to help museums and other heritage organisations develop pest management plans to protect their collections.
Created as part of the organisation’s Historic England-supported Pest Partners project, The Museum Life of Pests promotes Integrated Pest Management across the heritage sector.
The animation is an antidote to dry, stuffy written guidance and features cartoon pest characters delivering serious information on the actions necessary to safeguard collections.
“Integrated Pest Management can sound arduous, but it’s just a way of bringing together all the actions we take to keep the museum clean, healthy and pest-free,” says Helena Jaeschke, conservation development officer for South West Museum Development.
“Join us for a 5-minute flutter through your museum to see what you can do and how it will help.”
The film has been produced to demonstrate the easy steps needed to manage pests. These measures include training for all paid and volunteer staff, planning ahead, regular building maintenance and good house-keeping.
Making the video was made possible courtesy of a grant from Art Fund, which enabled South West Museum Development to enlist the expertise of Kilogramme Animation Studio.
