THE STORY MUSEUM
The Story Museum has three core charitable aims: a) to establish and maintain a museum dedicated to children's literature and the City of Oxford; b) to conserve, interpret and develop collections and heritage assets relevant to these subjects; c) to provide learning opportunities for and promote literacy and creativity among children, young people and families.
Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts
The accounts state that the charity ended the year with a negative general fund balance of £319,783 and total unrestricted designated funds of £5,857,295 held in fixed assets. The auditor has reported a material uncertainty regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern due to worsening deficits and rising costs, although the trustees remain confident in the 12-month cash flow position.
What the accounts disclose
“Our reserves policy is to maintain a general reserve of two months of operational costs including a low level of core staff costs; alongside a designated reserve equal to the expected Management & Maintenance costs for the following year.” — page 12
“We draw attention to note 1(h) in the financial statements, which indicates that it has been a challenging period for the Museum in which some income goals were not achieved and costs continued to rise inexorably. This led to the deficit balance on the general reserve worsening over the year. As a result, a material uncertainty exists that may cast significant doubt on the charity's ability to continue as a going concern.” — page 14
“The Charity has a 100%-owned subsidiary company, The Story Museum Trading Limited (company number 5296271), which delivers the schools programme and teacher training.” — page 30
In the news
Property (HM Land Registry)
Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2025)
Trustees
- Andrew Ryan
- Conrad Philip William Bodman
- Dr Gabrielle Heffernan
- Guy Gadney
- Heather Carter
- James Catchpole
- John Palmer
- Katherine Howard-Cairns
- Patricia Jane Townsend
- Perri Evans
- Sarah Love
- Shirin Welham
Income and spending
| Financial year end | Income | Spending |
|---|---|---|
| 31/03/2025 | £2.3m | £2.3m |
| 31/03/2024 | £1.8m | £2.2m |
| 31/03/2023 | £1.8m | £2.0m |
| 31/03/2022 | £1.4m | £1.8m |
| 31/03/2021 | £1.9m | £1.3m |
Common questions
Is THE STORY MUSEUM financially healthy?
Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity ended the year with a negative general fund balance of £319,783 and total unrestricted designated funds of £5,857,295 held in fixed assets. The auditor has reported a material uncertainty regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern due to worsening deficits and rising costs, although the trustees remain confident in the 12-month cash flow position. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by Wenn Townsend.
Who funds THE STORY MUSEUM?
Funders whose own accounts filings name THE STORY MUSEUM as a grant recipient include THE FIDELITY UK FOUNDATION, THE LINMARDON TRUST, THE EMMANUEL KAYE FOUNDATION, WILFRID AND CONSTANCE CAVE FOUNDATION, THE REED FOUNDATION.
Known funders
Government & lottery funding
| Funder | Date | Amount | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| The National Lottery Heritage Fund | 11/03/2026 | £238k | "A New Roof: To protect, preserve and celebrate storytelling" |
| The National Lottery Heritage Fund | 01/11/2023 | £165k | "Digital 1001" |
| UK government | 13/10/2022 | £178k | National Portfolio Organisations |
| UK government | 13/12/2021 | £178k | National Portfolio Organisations |
| The National Lottery Heritage Fund | 21/09/2016 | £1.2m | "The Story Museum - Building a world of stories" |
| The National Lottery Heritage Fund | 22/05/2012 | £42k | "Intangible heritage, tangible skills: participating in Oxford's story heritage" |
| The National Lottery Community Fund | 15/09/2006 | £9k | Family Outreach Programme |
Funders of similar charities
| Funder | Similar charities funded | Amount to them |
|---|---|---|
| NPT Transatlantic Limited | 1 | £10.5m |
| THE JULIA RAUSING TRUST | 1 | £761k |
| THE MASTER CHARITABLE TRUST | 1 | £733k |
| THE WESTMINSTER FOUNDATION | 1 | £155k |
| NATIONAL ART COLLECTIONS FUND | 1 | £75k |
| JOHN ELLERMAN FOUNDATION | 1 | £25k |
| ST. NICHOLAS' EDUCATIONAL TRUST | 1 | £20k |
| THE DJANOGLY FOUNDATION | 1 | £12k |
Charities like this
- SEVEN STORIES, THE NATIONAL CENTRE FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS
- SEVEN STORIES, THE NATIONAL CENTRE FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS COLLECTION TRUST
- THE ROALD DAHL MUSEUM AND STORY CENTRE
- UK Storyhouse Limited
- THE MUSEUMS ASSOCIATION
- NATIONAL JUSTICE MUSEUM
Side by side with its peers
| Charity | Income | Top pay band | Staff >£60k | Reserves vs policy | Fundraising cost | Going concern |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| THE STORY MUSEUM | £2.3m | — | 0 | unclear | — | material uncertainty |
| SEVEN STORIES, THE NATIONAL CENTRE FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS | £1.6m | — | 0 | unclear | — | no doubt |
| SEVEN STORIES, THE NATIONAL CENTRE FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS COLLECTION TRUST | £140k | — | 0 | unclear | — | no doubt |
| THE ROALD DAHL MUSEUM AND STORY CENTRE | £1.0m | — | — | unclear | — | no doubt |
| UK Storyhouse Limited | £7.6m | £60,001 - £70,000 | — | unclear | 46.6% | no doubt |
| THE MUSEUMS ASSOCIATION | £2.2m | — | — | above | — | no doubt |