Following this year's anger over the grants the borough council awarded to Haslemere's facilities, the town council has looked at the amount Waverley plans to give the museum next year.
As previously reported by The Herald, the borough council slashed its grant to Haslemere Museum and Haslemere Hall for the current financial year.
Haslemere Museum applied for £5,000 but received nothing while the hall, which also applied for £5,000, received only £2,000. This was because the accounts of both showed that they had significant reserves.
However, it was the fact that organisations in Waverley's other towns, especially Farnham, received a massive chunk of the grants which caused a huge outcry - sparking allegations at the time of a "bias".
Town councillors, who met last Thursday, said that although they had previously expressed their disappointment and anger over the perceived bias of Waverley towards Farnham, Godalming and Cranleigh at the expense of Haslemere, they had not criticised the borough council as much as they could have done.
But they warned that if a similar shortfall in the funding to Haslemere was repeated next year, they would kick up a huge fuss.
"As a council we took a very genteel stance on the museum and hall," said Brian Howard.
"We realise that we can't change that decision but we need to influence the forthcoming one.
"I shall be rather less genteel next time round if the borough council has not heeded the gentle notice it has been given."
At last week's meeting, the finance and general purposes committee received a report from the council's grants panel which recommend that the museum receive a town council grant of £10,000 in the next financial year to help with its running costs.
The council's report said that Bernard Coe from the museum had spoken at the grants panel meeting and explained that although the museum had made savings, it was still in line for a huge financial deficit both this financial year and the next.
"Efforts have been made to boost reserves by reorganising the museum shop, attracting corporate sponsorship and, in the near future, by letting the cottage previously occupied by the assistant curator," the report said.
"This year the deficit is expected to be £40-50,000, reducing to £30,000 in 2005."
Councillors heard that the Charity Commission has specific guidelines about reserves and puts limits on how they can be used.
The council agreed to highlight these to the borough council and to make the town council's support of the museum clear to both the borough council and Surrey County Council, to which grant applications can be made by the museum.
"I do strongly support the recommendation that we should make a grant of £10,000 to the museum - I know how desperately they need the money," said James Mackie.
"It should give us some leverage with Waverley and we can ask them to match it.
"I hope that if we show willing it will increase the pressure on them."
His views were supported by Mark Lelliott, who said that it was vital the town council shows its support for the museum.
"We are demonstrating our support for a very important facility for Haslemere," he said. "I hope Waverley will reflect that."
James Mackie added: "It is an important Waverley facility and not just a facility for Haslemere."
The town mayor, Jean Arrick, told the meeting that next year the borough council had the chance to make up for this year's grant cuts.
"I feel that Waverley has let us down in the past," she said. "It is not doing for us what it has been doing for other towns.
"I hope that it will find grant funding (for Haslemere) this time."
Michael Biddiscombe pointed out that Waverley's deputy leader, Gillian Ferguson, had previously attended a town council meeting and explained the difficulties the borough council had in deciding how much grant money to give out.
At that meeting she explained that Waverley was looking at a way of dividing up borough grants fairly between the different areas of Waverley to make sure that Haslemere receives a fair share of the cash.
Mr Biddiscombe said that he was hopeful that this was something to which the borough would adhere.
"We are saying to Waverley 'we are doing our piece and we hope you will find your way to doing yours'," he said.
The town council's proposed £10,000 grant to the museum will be included in its provisional budget for next year, which has not yet been agreed.
Waverley Borough Council is expected to make its decision over the grant funding to organisations such as Haslemere Museum in February.