UK Maritime Heritage Forum Conference 20th-21st October 2025
Venue: National Museums Scotland, Edinburgh
The UK Maritime Heritage Forum this year will meet in Scotland’s capital. Edinburgh, with its ports of Leith, Newhaven and Granton, is home to the Royal Yacht Britannia and has distinct maritime histories of shipbuilding, ship owning, whaling and fishing.
The forum will be hosted by National Museums Scotland, which cares for over 12 million objects and specimens across four museums and the National Museums Collection Centre.
As ever, the forum is an opportunity to come together and reflect on those aspects of maritime heritage practice that connect us all whether we care for static collections or operating vessels, whether large museum or small volunteer team.
This year the forum invites innovative papers on the theme of Staying Afloat, caring for and sharing our maritime heritage.
Topics could include:
• Ships, shipyards and docksides - industrial conservation and preservation challenges
• The Blue Economy - making maritime heritage commercially viable
• Overcoming Sea Blindness - engaging with port communities
• Dangers to our Maritime Heritage – how is your organisation tackling risks to your collections?
Proposals
• 20-minute illustrated paper – these can provide either an overview of an issue or focus on a case study. Speakers are asked to provide a 20-minute illustrated presentation.
• 5-minute summary – an opportunity to share your news updates, ideas and experiences of change, presented as a short verbal update.
• Poster session - display a flipchart-sized poster during conference breaks to share updates on something that you’re working on in an informal, friendly environment, and to talk one to one with other delegates about your project.
Proposals may come from within the maritime heritage community or from beyond. Insights and best practice from other sectors will be particularly welcomed. The UKHMF traditionally provides a platform for connecting a wide range of different voices, specialisms and organisations and the final conference programme will be structured accordingly. The conference is an in-person event. Speakers contributing 20-minute papers will have the conference fee waived. However, if your institution is able to pay conference fees this will make a huge difference to our ability to include others who may otherwise struggle to attend.
How to submit
Please submit a summary of your proposal in up to 300 words, or express interest in presenting a poster, by 12 noon on 9th May 2025 to Clare.Hunt@NMRN.org.uk. Please state whether you wish to present for 5 or for 20 minutes. The final UKMHF programme will be released by the summer of 2025 with full information for speakers and delegates
Zone Scotland