Every decision inside a museum pulls in two directions at once: protect the collection, or welcome the visitor who came to see it. Turn the lights up for a better view and a watercolour fades a little faster; open a historic room to full capacity and the floor and fittings take the strain. Facilities management in the cultural sector is, in large part, the discipline of managing that tension without giving up on either side.

The Heritage Building Care, Collections Protection and Visitor Experience training course, delivered by Arab British Fellowship Training Academy, is built around that balance — environmental control and conservation, security and risk, heritage-appropriate maintenance and regulatory compliance, and visitor flow and accessibility — so participants can protect irreplaceable assets while keeping cultural spaces genuinely welcoming.

By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:

• Explain what distinguishes cultural facilities management from conventional building operations.
• Apply preservation and conservation principles, including environmental controls, to protect sensitive collections.
• Apply security and risk management practices specific to museums and heritage sites, including emergency preparedness.
• Manage maintenance within heritage buildings while navigating regulatory and compliance constraints.
• Design visitor services and flow that enhance the cultural experience without compromising preservation.
• Apply sustainable practices suited to the constraints of historic and sensitive environments.
• Balance preservation priorities with accessibility, operational demands, and visitor expectations.

Target Group

• Facilities and heritage site managers working within museums and cultural institutions
• Visitor services managers, conservation professionals, and collections care staff
• Museum directors and administrative managers overseeing building operations
• Security managers and heritage authority officials responsible for cultural asset protection

Module 1: What Makes Cultural Facilities Different

• Scope and unique characteristics of cultural facilities management
• Differences between heritage sites and conventional buildings
• Balancing preservation priorities with operational demands

Module 2: Preservation, Conservation and Environmental Control

• Core preservation principles and coordinating with conservators
• Managing temperature, humidity, light, and pest risks for collection care
• Integrating environmental control systems with building operations

Module 3: Security and Risk in Cultural Institutions

• Identifying security risks specific to museums and heritage sites
• Emergency preparedness and disaster risk management for irreplaceable assets
• Coordinating security operations with visitor services

Module 4: Maintaining Heritage Buildings Within the Rules

• Principles and methods for maintaining historically significant structures
• Working within heritage regulatory constraints and appropriate materials
• Permitting, approvals, and documentation obligations for protected sites

Module 5: Designing the Visitor Experience

• Managing visitor flow, capacity, and accessibility
• Coordinating amenities and wayfinding for diverse visitor groups
• Balancing visitor services with preservation and security requirements

Module 6: Sustainable Stewardship for the Long Term

• Applying sustainable practices within heritage building constraints
• Energy efficiency strategies suited to sensitive environments
• Long-term, funded planning for sustainable cultural asset stewardship