Group: Wycombe Museum
Project: Revitalising the museum's learning programme
Grant: £9,990
Fund: Community Fund
Rising costs and limited school budgets can prevent pupils from visiting museums and experiencing cultural learning first-hand. Wycombe Museum is tackling these barriers by bringing local heritage directly into classrooms across South Buckinghamshire, helping more young people access historical objects and engaging learning experiences regardless of their school’s budget.
A grant from Heart of Bucks enabled Wycombe Museum to appoint a Project Learning Officer to strengthen its education programme. They worked with local schools to understand their needs, documented the museum’s handling collection, developed lesson plans for sessions delivered both in schools and at the museum, and refreshed loan boxes with detailed teaching resources.
These improvements have given teachers more opportunities to deliver practical, curriculum-linked learning without the expense of organising transport to the museum. Schools unable to afford educational visits can now access historical objects and supporting resources in the classroom, allowing pupils to learn through examining and interpreting objects rather than relying solely on books and digital materials.
The refreshed loan boxes and enhanced teaching resources also make it easier for teachers to incorporate local history into their lessons. By handling authentic objects, pupils can investigate how people lived in the past, ask questions about historical evidence and develop their critical thinking skills. These experiences help bring local history to life and give young people a more tangible connection to the heritage of their own communities.
The project has also strengthened Wycombe Museum’s ability to respond to schools’ needs and deliver learning in more accessible ways. By improving its resources and offering greater flexibility in how sessions are delivered, the museum is helping to reduce the financial and practical barriers that can prevent children from engaging with cultural heritage.
As a result of their grant, Wycombe Museum is better equipped to reach pupils who might otherwise miss out on these experiences, helping more young people explore their local history.
