Why did your organisation choose to be part of the cohort?

We wanted to provide a family friendly experience for our visitors and to learn from the experiences of others. We had identified family visitors as a target audience through our Audience Development work and knew that we wanted to enhance our family offer to meet the needs of this audience. We felt that joining the cohort would enable us to explore ways in which we could do this and meet the criteria of the Kids in Museums Manifesto. We were keen to look at what could be achieved immediately and to make plans for the longer term.

What was your organisation’s approach to family provision before the cohort?

Prior to COVID-19, we provided various hands-on activities within our displays, including magnetic jigsaws, games, dressing up and themed toys. We also had a ‘Creation Station’ for young children. These had been removed as a result of the pandemic, but this presented an opportunity to reflect on ways in which we could improve our offer.

We have an outdoor area with a limited number of family friendly features, such as a willow den, storytelling chair, balancing logs, bug house and outdoor loom.

We usually have a family events programme but this had been adapted to individual activity bags related to the event theme due to COVID-19 safety restrictions.

We run a Young Archaeologists’ Club for children 8-17 years.

It is free for children to visit the museum. Parents and carers can buy an Annual Pass which means they can visit any time with their children. We also participate in the MAX scheme.

There are baby changing facilities in each toilet area and the Firebox Café offers a child’s lunch option. We have onsite parking (paid).

What did you achieve as a result of the cohort?

  • Audit of our family provision that led to short, medium and long term plans to enhance our provision for families.
  • Introduction of additional on-site activities including dressing up and ‘feely’ points linked to the displays, as well as safely reintroducing hands-on resources.
  • New family web page with visual story.
  • New family map to help families to navigate the site and ensure they’re aware of the facilities available.
  • New family mascot, a family club called the Scurry Club with stamp card and benefits.
  • Introduction of pick and mix point where families can collect age-related activity lanyards linked to the family map and displays.
  • New SEND backpacks together with communication symbols linked with collections, activity lanyards and visit planning boards.
  • New breastfeeding area.
  • Emergency nappy provision.

In focus: SEND Family Provision

We were inspired by the training sessions held with Kids in Museums, Museum Tales and Sam Bowen, Director of SEND in Museums. Having heard directly from families with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) within the session, we felt it important to ensure that our work to improve our provision for families responded to the needs of all families.

We used our learning to create a better online welcome, including the production of a visual story to enable families to plan and prepare for a visit. This features on the Family page of the museum website.

We then wanted to make sure that everyone visiting as part of a family group would be engaged and have a happy, positive experience once on site. We created activities for different age ranges and needs that could be collected on a pick and mix basis at the start of the visit. Families can now collect resources suited to each person in their family group. The activities and resources were trialled over the half term holidays and were adapted as a result of family feedback.

An important aspect of the project was building a relationship with a local school for SEND children. We consulted with them about communication symbols, the contents of the SEND backpacks and the lanyard activities. Having developed a relationship with the school and staff who were so helpful, we now hope to build on this and to continue to work with them to enable them to make greater use of our resources, both on and off site. We also worked with a colleague whose child has additional needs and her family enjoyed helping trial the backpacks and activity lanyards.

The backpacks include objects that help with engagement with the collections, such as fidget toys that link with the display themes or objects, as well as items that help families to manage the visit and where possible avoid any stressful situations, including a mascot toy that can be used to help direct the visit and timers that can be used to manage the length of stay at one place. All family resources are presented together, which hopefully means that all family groups feel welcome and can have fun exploring and learning together.

Budget

The total cost of the project was £2,468.

  • Graphic designer fees (including mascot and family map creation): £1,560
  • Physical resources (including backpacks and lanyards): £908

We were successful in applying for a small grant from Museum Development Yorkshire, which meant that we were able to boost our budget.

What was your organisation’s approach to families after the cohort?

We have made significant progress towards meeting the principles of the Kids in Museums Manifesto and all aspects are being embedded within our service.

Beginning with our new family web page, all families can now plan their visit more easily and feel welcome. Once on site, families are actively encouraged to make use of the activity prompts, lanyards and hands-on activities in the galleries.

We hope that increased satisfaction with the museum experience will enable us to grow our family audience.

We intend to continue to make improvements within the galleries and online. Our next steps are to improve internal and external signage and introduce more information for families to make better use of the outdoor space. We will also be introducing more sound into the galleries and hope that this will encourage families to share their memories and responses to the objects displayed and the stories being told.

Top tips

  • Audit your service using the Kids in Museums Manifesto.
  • Identify any quick wins and introduce these first.
  • Appreciate that families come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.
  • Listen to families.
  • Build relationships with organisations and individuals who can help with the creation of resources and giving feedback.
  • Think about what families need to know before they visit, as well as what will be of benefit during their visit.
  • Make plans for longer term improvements.
  • Meeting the needs of families can also help to meet the needs of other visitors.

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