Kids In Museums
The Family Friendly Museum Award has become a benchmark for excellence in the heritage sector since it began in 2004. Each year Kids in Museums receives hundreds of public nominations, which are whittled down to a shortlist by an expert panel. Families then visit each shortlisted museum over the summer holidays to decide the winner.
The shortlist recognises the extraordinary work that’s been delivered by frontline museum staff and celebrates the imagination and innovation demonstrated by a sector that is offering more engagement, interaction and inclusivity than ever before. What set the venues on our shortlist apart was that they not only created an excellent visitor experience for families, but also showed a great commitment behind the scenes to respond to family feedback and improve access, especially for those who are not regular visitors.
National Emergency Services Museum
The National Emergency Services Museum (NESM) is an independent, self-funded museum and charity dedicated to celebrating and preserving the history of the emergency services and their communities, in peace and war. We are regularly involved in local community work, wider national and international projects as well as events all over the country. We are the largest combined emergency services museum in the world.
The museum is housed in a historic combined police, fire and ambulance station in Sheffield City Centre. Our building dates back to 1900 and a number of original features, such as the Victorian police cells and engine house, have been preserved within the museum.
In this Tardis-like building we tell the stories of all our emergency services through vintage vehicles, original objects, dynamic displays and interactive exhibitions. We house a treasure trove of items from the biggest (like our 47 foot lifeboat!) to the smallest. Our collection boasts more than 600,000 objects from historic uniforms and badges to medical equipment, and includes about 150 historic vehicles of which around 40 are on display at the museum at any one time. We also care for a number of unique items from other organisations, such as HM Coastguard.
https://www.visitnesm.org.uk
Lauren Learns History/Rewind The Time Productions
We’re husband and wife team, Lauren and Ian Grierson. With over ten years of experience working in the heritage and culture sector, we help museums and cultural organisations to create family friendly content that brings history to life. We write and produce original stories, interactive family trails, family events and tours, as well as digital content for various museums and organisations. We’re on a mission to turn history into a playful adventure for families. Picture this: original stories that teleport you through time, interactive family trails that'll have you solving historical puzzles, and events that make history leap off the pages! We have had the privilege of working alongside esteemed institutions including The National Trust, Royal Academy, Museum of London, Kew Gardens and London Transport Museum amongst many more. We believe history isn't just about dates and facts; it's an intriguing story that provides context to the world we live in. History can help understand ourselves and others better, making us more compassionate and curious human beings. But, most of all, we believe that history should be accessible to everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from.
