Our National Cultural Institutions continue to play a vital role in safekeeping and providing access to Australian content, collections and cultural heritage.
COVID-19 and natural disasters continued to present challenges in 2021–22. These factors reduced opportunities for people to connect in person with National Cultural Institutions and their activities and access national collections; and for National Cultural Institutions to share the Australian narrative.
The National Cultural Institutions reported considerable downturns in some key performance areas in 2021–22. Despite this, the year also produced some record results—highlighting the resilience and dedication of the National Cultural Institutions in sharing our stories.
The findings highlight the importance of the National Cultural Institutions in Australia's cultural landscape and the growing trend towards online access and digitisation. In 2021–22, Australian and overseas audiences benefitted from increased opportunity to digitally access our nation's stories and collections.
We work collaboratively with the National Cultural Institutions to better understand trends in their activities. This is the tenth year this data has been captured, building a comprehensive picture of trends in visits, audience reach and educational programs over time.
2021–22 Results
2021–22 Trends
- 2021–22 results and trends alt text
- 2020–21 results and trends alt text
- 2020–21 results
- 2020–21 trends
- 2019–20 results
- 2019–20 trends
- 2018–19 results
- 2018–19 trends
The National Cultural Institutions are:
- Australian National Maritime Museum
- Bundanon Trust
- The Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House
- National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
- The National Gallery of Australia
- The National Library of Australia
- The National Museum of Australia
- The National Portrait Gallery
- The Australia Council for the Arts
- The Australian Film, Television and Radio School
- Screen Australia
Note: Creative Partnerships Australia also contributed to the 2021–22 national cultural institution data. From 1 July 2023, Creative Partnerships Australia's functions will be delivered through Creative Australia (formerly the Australia Council) following changes as part of the Australian Government's National Cultural Policy, Revive: a place for every story, a story for every place.
All National Cultural Institutions included in the 2021–22 data were within the Australian Government's arts portfolio in 2021–22, with the exception of the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House. The Museum of Australian Democracy was part of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolio until July 2022, when it became part of the Arts Portfolio within the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts following Machinery of Government changes.