In this blog we’ve asked People’s History Museum’s (PHM) Interim Director Becky Peters to introduce the new Welcome Project at PHM, which is revitalising the museum’s visitor experience, as the exciting first steps begin on site today (15 September 2023).
People’s History Museum will close on Sunday 31 December 2023 and re-open on Thursday 1 February 2024 so that it can carry out further work as part of the Welcome Project at PHM, which stems from the museum’s vision to be an exemplar for accessibility.
The first stage of the project took place in September 2023 and saw the replacement of the entrance doors with fully accessible sliding doors. The next stage will be the installation of a Changing Places toilet and improvements to the visitor journey, to include a new digital screen, accessible signage, and interactive digital elements.
Minor building works will be taking place during December 2023; we will take every measure to limit noise and disruption during this time.
The Welcome Project at PHM is all about evolving the museum’s visitor experience, with a vision for PHM to be an exemplar for accessibility. This will mean that the museum is as welcoming as it can be to everyone and will give us the opportunity to connect with new and existing visitors.
We’ve been working with partners and funders to map out how to best achieve our aim, and over the coming weeks and months we’ll start to see that work coming together as physical changes begin to take place at the museum.
There are a number of key actions, including:
There is also a wider community aspect to the project, which as well as improving access to our exhibitions and events, will create an accessible civic space in the Spinningfields area of Manchester city centre.
A whole body of work has taken place alongside the creation of our 2022-2023 exhibition Nothing About Us Without Us (on show until 16 October 2023), which explores the history of disabled people’s activism and the ongoing fight for rights and inclusion. The Welcome Project at PHM is taking the learnings from this work and applying them more broadly to the museum, so that we can ensure that it is as welcoming and accessible a place as possible. In doing so, the project is paying particular attention to recommendations to improve the experience of disabled people visiting PHM.
We understand that everyone has different access needs and meeting these is part of our commitment to supporting all visitors during their time at PHM. One of the key pieces of work that has informed the project is an access audit that was carried out by Manchester Disabled People’s Access Group (MDPAG) in 2020. It is these recommendations together with the insight of the Nothing About Us Without Us (NAUWU) project steering group, and NAUWU exhibition Community Curators that has driven the progress being achieved.
At the end of September 2023, we will be able to welcome you through our new fully accessible sliding doors and a more open visitor entrance to the building.
Then in January 2024 a Changing Places toilet will be installed. Also taking place at this time will be the installation of a new digital screen and improvements to the visitor journey, which will include new accessible signage and interactive digital elements.
This is a very collaborative project in which the team at PHM have received guidance and support from Manchester Disabled People’s Access Group (MDPAG), the Nothing About Us Without Us (NAUWU) project steering group, and NAUWU exhibition Community Curators.
The work wouldn’t be possible without the support of the following funders: DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund 2022-2024, Valencia Communities Fund, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Manchester City Council and the government’s Changing Places Fund.
We would like to thank everyone that is a part of the Welcome Project at PHM.
This is just the beginning of what PHM hopes to achieve, and we have plans to continue to improve the offer for those visiting the museum. The next phase will consider how the team can better integrate digital experiences within the museum, add to Family Friendly elements and update our retail spaces – bringing the museum’s collection and inspiring stories to the forefront from the second you walk through the door.
The vision for the future is of a museum which is a living, evolving space that inspires and empowers.
Becky Peters joined PHM as Interim Director in November 2022 and brought a wealth of experience, including her work with Bristol Culture & Creative Industries.
Visit the Nothing About Us Without Us exhibition and explore disabled people’s activism, on show until Monday 16 October 2023.
Read our blog from Programme Officer Michael Powell sharing information about the Nothing About Us Without Us programme and PHM’s four Community Curators who reveal why they chose to get involved.
Discover details about access at the museum and our commitment to support all visitors during their time at PHM.
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