London Transport Museum held it’s first Explorer event for families with additional needs back in 2014. This came out of a family’s feedback that a quiet time to visit was needed for their child as the Museum gets very busy and loud. We started with two mornings for the year but as of 2019, we now run 7 events annually; …
The challenges of adapting our museum for relaxed sessions. Gladstone’s Land, Edinburgh. Nov, 2019.
At Gladstone’s Land we are very happy to announce that we will be starting new relaxed sessions for visiting us very soon. We are a National Trust for Scotland property in the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town and our building is one of the oldest on Edinburgh’s most famous street: the Royal Mile. Our house is a lovely example of …
Night Owls at the Science Museum
Night Owls at the Science Museum The Science Museum are running this event please share to your networks there are hardly any events for adults but if not enough people go they may not put on another event. Saturday 6th July Free accessible event for adults and young adults (ages 16+ only) Our Night Owls events are designed for adults and …
A first visit to the National Army Museum, March 2019
It can be very daunting visiting a new place for the first time, particularly if you are on the autism spectrum. Museums are starting to do more to help visitors prepare for a visit as well as offer ‘relaxed hours’ where they can keep the visitor numbers down. The National Army Museum offered their first relaxed visit called ‘At Ease’ …
National Museums Liverpool named Autism Champion of the month for April
Liverpool continues to lead the way to becoming an Autism Friendly city. Is is fantastic news to hear they have been chosen as Autism Champions for April. They run events across their museums and you can find out more here. The team at National Museums Liverpool have been working with Autism Together since 2015 to provide an autism-friendly atmosphere and …
‘The Winter’s Tale’- Relaxed Performance, National Theatre, February 2019
I can’t actually think of a time when we have all visited the theatre together. With two autistic children it is a sensory overload just waiting to happen. Quite frankly I am loathe to pay out for something that we probably won’t even get into, let alone sit through. Barriers include: travelling into London; busy, noisy places; expectation; excitement that …
Ryan’s story, Brunel’s SS Great Britain
I first started volunteering at Brunel’s SS Great Britain as a Visitor Services Assistant back in December 2015. It feels like ages ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. My co-volunteers remember me as a white ghost – I was shy and very quiet, due to how nervous I was, but that would all soon change! I started …
‘A Winter’s Tale’ at the National Theatre, London 6-21st February 2019
We have struggled in the past to visit the theatre as a family. There are lots of sensory triggers, foyers busy with crowds, dark auditoriums, not knowing what will happen next and loud noise. I few years back I visited the National Theatre for a relaxed performance of ‘I want my hat back‘. On this occasion I visited on my …
Training Day – Welcoming Families and Young People with Autism
Autism in Museums is delighted to be partnering with Kids in Museums and National Museums Liverpool to offer a training day on 9th May in Liverpool. Would you like to make your venue more welcoming to families and young people with autism, but aren’t sure where to start? Have you begun to make changes but need some further inspiration? On …
Holding our first relaxed opening at Cornwall’s Regimental Museum
Holding a relaxed opening at Cornwall’s Regimental Museum “Just a few simple adaptations can give a family a visit to remember” Relaxed openings have become increasingly common over the past few years. From cinemas to theatres to supermarkets, from the cultural sector to big business increasingly organisations have been thinking about how they can adjust their offer to become more …