Brand-new schools facility opens at Black Country Living Museum

A dedicated space to support young and adult learners has opened at one of the region’s most popular school trip destinations, allowing the Museum to deliver more unforgettable educational experiences.

Following the opening of the Museum’s new Visitor Centre in September 2022, the Museum’s former admissions building has been repurposed as the Museum Conference & Learning Centre. The newly-refurbished learning space – for use exclusively by visiting schools and colleges – includes two new classrooms, a lunch space and a gift shop, as well as providing a dedicated entrance and exit point. The Museum’s overflow car park will also be available for the sole use of schools and groups during term time, allowing easier access into the Museum.

As a registered educational charity, the Museum’s school offer is vital to the work that it does. The facility will enable the Museum to deliver more workshops and lessons in support of learners and increase its capacity to welcome educational groups.

The Museum worked with local architects TNM Design Group to transform the building. Nick Chapman, Director of TNM, said: “TNM Architecture, as a Black Country based architectural practice, has been honoured to assist the Museum’s team as part of their refurbishment, providing an educational tool for visiting children and students alike.”

Carol King, Director of Programmes at the Museum, said: “As an educational charity, we value every single pupil who comes to visit us on a school trip to experience the history of the Black Country. Being able to provide a dedicated space to enhance their visit with workshops and sessions in new classrooms allows us to add value to the experience both for pupils and teachers. We’re thrilled with how the space has been transformed and we’re grateful to all our funders and supporters for enabling us to add this exciting new facility to the Museum.”

A competition to create artwork for the walls of the space was opened at the beginning of the project. The winning artwork, from Bramford Primary in Coseley, highlights the flames of industry from the Black Country’s past, with the bright orange and yellow accents extending throughout the design. Ahead of the building’s public launch, a class of 22 children from the school were invited to an exclusive preview of the space, as well as the opportunity to take part in a canal art craft session.

The learning space has been directly supported by two key funders – the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Clive Richards Foundation. The facility’s two new classrooms have been named the Clive Richards Room and the Weston Room in acknowledgement of their support.

The refurbishment is a key part of the Museum’s larger capital development, which has been supported by National Lottery Heritage Fund, Black Country LEP, Arts Council England, Capital Kickstart fund, West Midlands Combined Authority and Dudley MBC.