Today we are delighted to reveal the shortlist for this year’s Family Friendly Museum Award. From the end of March to the beginning of June, families voted for their favourite attraction on our website. Thank you to everyone who took the time to make a nomination.

We received 600 nominations for over 110 different museums. This is the most nominations we have received since the COVID-19 pandemic and the standard of nominations was very high. An expert panel, made up of Kids in Museums staff, volunteers, Trustees, young people, accessibility experts, schoolchildren and an ESOL group, helped to whittle down the nominations to the shortlist announced today.

Scroll down to see our full shortlist and add them to your visit list this summer. Some of the inspiring ways the museums are welcoming families include: co-designing dedicated family spaces, having a Play Strategy, planning exciting events like Stroller Tours and Jerk Cookouts, providing free ‘caught short’ supplies, becoming Warm Spaces, recruiting a VR artist in residence and much more!

Vanessa Eke, Chair of Kids in Museums, said: “Congratulations to our wonderful shortlist! What made these venues stand out in an exceptionally strong year of applications was how embedded they are in their local communities. Many are actively supporting more families to get involved, from creative workshops for Ukrainian refugees to special ticketing offers during the cost-of-living crisis. I’m thrilled we can recognise their ambition and dedication on a national level.

“Museums across the UK are an amazing resource for families looking for a memorable, affordable and fun day out this summer. We hope families enjoy visiting the shortlist over the holidays!”

The shortlist for the Family Friendly Museum Award 2023 is:

Best Large Museum

  • Horniman Museum and Gardens, London
  • Museum of Liverpool
  • National Maritime Museum, London

Best Medium Museum

  • The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge, Canterbury
  • Compton Verney, Warwickshire
  • Great North Museum: Hancock, Newcastle upon Tyne
  • The MAC, Belfast

Best Small Museum

  • Dylan Thomas Centre, Swansea
  • National Civil War Centre, Newark
  • Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro
  • Valence House Museum, Dagenham
  • Wolverhampton Art Gallery

Best Accessible Museum

  • Cannon Hall Museum, Park and Gardens, Barnsley
  • Craven Museum | Skipton Town Hall
  • Maidstone Museum

Best Youth Project – Climate

This new category recognises innovative and thoughtful projects engaging young people on the topic of the climate emergency and sustainability. It was open to museum applications only. Over the summer, the museums will present their work to an expert panel to decide the winner.

It’s now up to families to decide the winners. Over the summer holidays, undercover family judges will visit the shortlisted museums and judge them on how well they meet the Kids in Museums Manifesto. Their experiences will decide a winner for each museum category and an overall winner of the Family Friendly Museum Award 2023 to be announced at an awards ceremony in London in October.

Fancy becoming one of our Undercover Family Judges and helping to decide the winners? You can sign up now on our website.

We’ll be sharing more about our brilliant shortlist on our website and social media over the summer. Follow the Family Friendly Museum Award on social media by following us @kidsinmuseums and the hashtag #FamilyFriendlyMuseum.