We’ve known for a long time how special Bristol’s museums are. From the SS Great Britain and M Shed on the Harbourside, to Blaise Castle House Museum on open estate grounds and Bristol Museum and Art Gallery sat overlooking the city on Park Street, the range of quality experiences on offer here is broad.

So it’s not surprising that Bristol has just been named ‘Museum Destination of the Year’ in the Luxury Travel Guide awards – an accolade that puts us head and shoulders above all other European cities as the go to place for an excellent museum experience.

This award is great recognition of the hard work and creativity of those involved in the sector, my congratulations go out to them all.

In particular, I’d like to single out the council staff who have been through some tough times but have continued to show dedication, professionalism and a passion for their roles. The range of activity that they support is incredible; planning, preparing and curating exceptional exhibitions and displays, supporting and guiding visitors, managing and conserving the 1.75 million objects in our collection, bringing in schools for award winning educational sessions, working with academics to support research, the list is endless.

It’s clear that museums play a major role in making Bristol a city that is often named as one of the best places to visit or live in. A fact that is backed up by over one million visits to council managed museums every year, half of them passing through the doors of M Shed making it the most visited free attraction in the South West.

Working with partners and other museum leads from SS Great Britain and the Royal West of England Academy for example, our job is to ensure we support museums to continue their good work and inspire many generations to come.