Decorative covering never altered around front of exhibits (6)
I believe the answer is:
veneer
'decorative covering' is the definition.
'veneer' can be an answer for 'covering' (veneer is a kind of covering). I'm not certain of the 'decorative' bit.
'never altered around front of exhibits' is the wordplay.
'altered' indicates anagramming the letters.
'around' is an insertion indicator.
'front of' says to take the initial letters (the letter at the front of the word).
The first letter of 'exhibits' is 'e'.
'never' anagrammed gives 'vener'.
'vener' placed around 'e' is 'VENEER'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for veneer that I've seen before include "Thin layer of fine wood covering surface of cheaper wood" , "Thin layer glued to the top" , "Thin wooden facing" , "Thin covering on the outside" , "A thin outer layer" .)