Insurance Museum (IM) launches a major fundraising campaign to realise its ambitions to open a museum in London EC3 dedicated to insurance, in 3 years’ time
January 2026 marks the official launch of the IM Slip campaign, which aims to raise £1m a year over the next 3 years, to fund a museum with an educational centre, dedicated to all things insurance. With the permanent centre, digital galleries, tours, webinars and educational resources, IM will be a valuable resource for preserving and sharing the fascinating history of insurance, educating the public and attracting new talent into the sector.
The campaign focuses around three steps:
- Step 1: Make an annual donation to IM for 3 years
- Step 2: Share the slip with 3 of your network
- Step 3: Together we’ll open the IM in 3 years
IM Director Howard Benge says: “We hope all insurance professionals will come together to support this campaign, to bring in the necessary funds to support IM’s ambitions, to be a fabulous centre for educational and historic resources. Through the museum and its educational outreach programmes, we aim to reach children, young people, parents, teachers, students and insurance professionals, to share the story of insurance, how it works and what role it plays in our society today. In particular, we hope to reach children – particularly those from underprivileged backgrounds – to inspire them to consider insurance as a future career.”
The slip campaign was inspired by the historical use of the slip in insurance, which since its origins in the coffee houses of the late 17th century, has always signalled innovation, collaboration and shared risk. By using the slip as central to the campaign message, the IM hopes to bring together those same values today, to inspire the insurance profession to come together, to create what will be a great resource and legacy for the sector.
The IM was the brainchild of Chairman Reg Brown, a former President of the CII and Founder and former Chairman of the MGAA. He cites as his inspiration, the long career he enjoyed in insurance and his time mentoring young people and showing them round the Bank of England’s museum. “I never understood why the Bank of England had this fabulous museum but the insurance sector did not”, he says. “Insurance has been a wonderful career for me and I always wanted to give something back to the sector”. He explains further: “Not enough people understand what insurance is, its fascinating history, its social and economic importance and the range of jobs available within the profession. A museum with educational resources should unite the sector in helping to raise these funds and thereby increase the public’s awareness of insurance and drive talent into the sector. The National Lottery Heritage Fund gave a vote of confidence when it awarded the IM with a grant of £249,700. It’s now time for the insurance sector itself to step up and generously support the museum.”
The slip campaign asks the insurance sector or philanthropic individuals to sign up and become IM Founder donors, by offering a specified sum for 3 years, to get the museum up and running. Donorship levels range from bronze (minimum £2,500 a year) to diamond (minimum £100,000 a year). The campaign also asks donors to nominate at least 3 others in their network to join up and donate, as part of the theme of “shared responsibility”. Full details are on the IM campaign website: insurance.museum/slip
Donors will receive the following recognition:
- A signed letter of recognition from the IM Chair / Trustee / Director
- A personalised IM Founder certificate
- Listing on the IM Founders’ wall online and permanently in the museum
- The digital IM Founder mark for donor website and communications
- A media pack for PR and internal communications
- Invitations to exclusive previews and events
- Quarterly updates on progress toward opening
Once the museum is open, the IM will invite all IM Founder Donors (or their representative) to sign a physical IM Slip as a lasting legacy for the sector.
The Insurance Museum is a UK charity, which relies entirely on the generous donations and continued support of the insurance profession. The IM will not happen without this support. But, if the sector acts now and comes together to unite in a common cause, it will have a cultural anchor for education, exhibitions and engagement for generations to come.
Notes to Editors
About Insurance Museum
The Insurance Museum is a registered charity (Charity Number 1188138), that is focused on becoming an educational forum for engaging audiences in the global story of insurance – past, present, and future. It does this through collections of insurance heritage from private, public, and corporate archives.
The Museum is self-funded and relies on generous donations from the insurance profession and grants from funds and foundations. Our long-term goal is to establish a world-class visitor and research centre in the City of London, where we will exhibit our collections and engage everyone interested in the fascinating story of insurance.
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Further information
For further information, images and interviews, please contact Sarah Begley at OB Brand Consulting – sarah.begley@ob.consulting – 0208 390 0035
