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Art collections held by local authority museums are in danger of falling behind those of national attractions, the Art Fund has warned.The charity's survey findings found 75% of the 276 UK museums polled cited inadequate funding and reduced spending as the biggest barrier to collecting.
The Collecting Challenge 2010 survey found 14% of local authorities saw adding to collections as a priority.
The Art Fund said collections were "in danger" of falling behind.
The survey found one in five museums and galleries felt avoiding staff cuts, and therefore loss of expertise, was a major obstacle to amassing more items.
The charity said survey responses suggested museums were "nervous" about public money being cut further after the general election, with more than 60% saying that avoiding cuts after the election was the biggest challenge they face.
It found museums are finding innovative ways to enrich their collections.
For example, some 47% of museums and galleries are displaying an increasing number of items borrowed from other institutions, and 59% expect this trend to rise.
And 11% of museums have seen an increase in joint acquisitions in the last five years and 20% expect further combined purchases to be made in future.
Stephen Deuchar, director of the Art Fund, said: "The loss of curatorial knowledge from museums is deeply troubling.
"We must do all we can to preserve these skills now for the benefit of future generations of museum-goers."
Mr Deuchar said museums are "right to be concerned about the possibility of core funding being reduced after the election".
"Without a clear sign that funding will be maintained, collecting, whether individually or collectively, could become a rare luxury for museums," he said.
Mr Deuchar pointed to the recent work to save the Staffordshire Hoard as a good example of collaboration.This article is from the BBC News website. ? British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.