Migration Museum

A unique education in migration

The Migration Museum opened in 2013 to explore how the movement of people to and from Britain across the ages has shaped individuals, communities and the nation. As the only UK museum focused on migration, its exhibits and education programmes shine a light on who we are, where we come from and where we are going.

Our grant of more than £45,000 will allow the Migration Museum to expand its reach to twice as many students each year. A House of Commons survey of 500 History teachers found in 2021 that 85% wanted training to help them teach Black history and cultural diversity. Our grant will enable the museum to deliver training to 300 teachers, increasing their confidence in teaching about migration and reaching thousands of students.

  • Around 14,000 students from 400 schools, colleges and universities have taken part in Migration Museum workshops and hundreds of new teachers have benefited from their teacher training.
  • 80% of workshop participants say that they will use what they learned in the future.
  • Around 200 students a week take part in the museum’s education programmes during term time.

Learning in Lewisham

Based in Lewisham shopping centre, the Migration Museum is well placed for students at primary and secondary school and in further and higher education. Half of participants in the Museum’s education programmes are from Lewisham, one of the top 10% of areas in England where economic deprivation affects children and where 76% of students are of BAME heritage. Migration Museum programmes support students learning history, geography, citizenship, business studies and enterprise.

The Museum works hard to engage more young people in their work and to inspire their interest in the UK’s migration history. In the school holidays, the Migration Museum welcomes children of all ages and their families to explore migration through art, play and storytelling activities at free family fun days.

“This education project is absolutely at the heart of our mission and purpose and responds to an acute need throughout our education sector. The past few years have seen increasing public recognition of the urgent need to provide opportunities for young people from ethnically diverse backgrounds to learn about hitherto under-represented British histories. The Moving Stories competition is a key part of our strategy to build the national profile and awareness of the Migration Museum and ensure young peoples’ voices are fully represented in its exhibitions and approach.”

Margot Finn, Professor of Modern British History, UCL, Migration Museum Trustee and Education Committee Chair

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