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October Half Term in Dunstable 2023

October 12, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

With the Half Term fast approaching I’ve been pulling together a local guide for October Half Term in and around Dunstable. There’s an obvious Halloween slant to some of the events being held, but it’s also possible to find some non-spooky attractions to take your little ones to.

In Dunstable

Pumpkin Party at The Quadrant Shopping Centre

Organised by Dunstable Town Council there is a FREE Pumpkin party taking place in The Quadrant Shopping Centre on Wednesday 25 October from 11am to 2pm. There’s a pumpkin trail, arts and crafts, face painting and spooky golf. Full details here.

Dunstable Library Halloween Party

Promising ghoulish games and creepy crafts, Dunstable Library is hosting a Halloween Party for children aged 8+ on Thursday 26 October from 6.30 – 8pm. Call the library on 0300 300 8056 to book your FREE ticket. There’s also a prize for the best fancy dress. Further details here.

Houghton Hall Park Halloween Potion Trail

Taking place on Sunday 29 October from 11am to 3pm Houghton Hall Park is hosting a Halloween Potion Trail for children aged 3+. “Houghton, the witches cat, is on a mission to find the missing recipe for his mistresses’ magic potion which has been jumbled up by the naughty Halloween ghost. With the aid of your magical spy glasses help him decipher the recipe then come back to the Visitors Centre to claim your prize and make your own potion!” The trail costs £6 per child and you must book a timeslot in advance vis their website here.

A Witch In the Woods at the Dunstable Downs

Running all week from Saturday 21st to Sunday 29th October The National Trust team at the Dunstable Downs is running a Witch in the Woods trail and craft activity for children. “Our resident witch needs a helping hand to bring the magic back to her woodland home. Make your very own wand and join us on this mystical trail down to Chute Wood”. This costs £3 per trail and craft and no booking is necessary, just turn up at the Visitors’ Centre. Full details here.

Spooky Afternoon Tea at the Dunstable Downs

Children can enjoy a scary sandwich, spooky sweet treat and spell-binding soft drink at the Dunstable Downs visitors’ centre from Monday 23rd to Friday 27th October from 12 noon to 3pm. This costs £8.95 per child (and £5.95 per adult – for coffee/tea and seasonal cake) and you need to book in advance which you can do here.

The Sooty Show at the Grove Theatre

Sooty, Sweep and Soo are celebrating 75 years in show business with a special party performance at Dunstable’s Grove Theatre at 2.30pm on Saturday 28 October. With tonnes of laughter and audience participation The Sooty Show is the perfect family trip out to round off half term. Tickets are available via The Grove Theatre’s Box Office here.

Forest School Session for SEND Children

A FREE Forest School session of activities and a hot chocolate and a biscuit for SEND children aged 3-7 and their families (siblings welcome up to the age of 12). CHildren must be accompanied by a parent/carer. This session will take place in all weathers so please make sure you are all dressed appropriately.

This event is run by Dunstable Children’s Centre, Oakwood Avenue, Dunstable and takes place there on Wednesday 27th October between 10.00am and 11.30am. Numbers are limited so please contact the children’s centre to book, or for any other enquiries. Call 0300 300 8104 or email dunstablechildrenscentres@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

Sketch and Paint at Dunstable Library

A FREE event for children aged 5+, led by library staff that will include a range of different materials to use as well as guidance books and sheets. Book via the library. Either in person or on 0300 300 8056. Full details here.

Spooky Movie Night at Dunstable Library

Children ages 8+ are invited to Dunstable Library for a spooky movie night on Saturday 28 October from 4.30pm – 6pm. Tickets are FREE, but book via the library on 0300 300 8056. Full details here.

Just outside Dunstable

Boo at the Zoo at Whipsnade Zoo

Boo at the Zoo returns to Whipsnade Zoo from 21st to the 29th October with a theme of unseen animals – children will get to learn all about the animals who prefer nighttime. There are loads of activities including a halloween disco, a monstrous magic show, a costume contest, spooky storytelling, a ghoulish ghost tour, creepy crafts and pumpkin painting (an extra charge for this), a ghostly trail on The Great Whipsnade Railway (again, an additional charge for this), and animal talks about those nighttime preferring animals.

Normal zoo tickets are required (book here) and as pointed out above, some of the activities do have a separate charge. Full details of Boo at the Zoo are here.

Halloween Fun at Woodside Animal Farm

From Saturday 21st through to Sunday 29th October there is Halloween fun at Woodside Animal Farm in the form of finding witches and ghosts hidden around the farm to win a spooky treat, make a halloween decoration to take home and decorate a yummy spooky cookie. In addition, if you find the golden pumpkin hidden at the farm you can also win a super special prize. For an extra charge you can also pick your own pumpkin from their pumpkin corner. Tickets are £15 each for adults and children, and £5 for child members. Tickets for the Halloween Fun can be booked online here.

Freaky Fun Fest at Mede Open Farm

Running for the whole of half term week (21st to 29th October) the Freaky Fun Fest at Mede Open Farm gives you a Spooktacular family day out all included in your ticket price. There is a new new Freaky Flamenco Fiesta Circus and three spooky walkthrough attractions. Each child can pick a free pumpkin in their pumpkin patch and there’s a Monster Mash Mission to complete too. If you book your tickets online you also get a 20% discount on the gate price. Full details of the event are here, along with a link to book tickets.

In Luton

The Unscaredy Scaredy Cat Book Launch at Luton Hat Factory

Formy Books is holding a party to celebrate the publication of their new picture book – The Unscaredy Scaredy Cat. This FREE event is taking place at the Hat Factory Arts Centre on Saturday 21st October from 1 – 4pm and promises books, activities and goodie bags for the children. Full details here.

Hotel Transylvania at Luton Hat Factory Arts Centre

As part of the Family Film Club the Luton Hat Factory Arts Centre is showing the PG rated film Hotel Transylvania on Saturday 21st October at 10.30am. Tickets are £3.50 each (adult or child) or you can buy four tickets for £12. Tickets need to be booked in advance and you can do so here.

Steel Pan Workshop at Stockwood Discover Centre

Ever wanted to learn to play Steel Pan? This is your chance with a workshop at the Stockwood Discovery Centre on Tuesday 24 October. With a guidance of being suitable for children aged 6+ there are two workshops (11.30am and 2pm) but tickets are selling fast. They need to be booked in advance here.

Wow! Said the Owl at Stockwood Discover Centre

Based on Tim Hopgood’s picture book, Wow! Said the Owl is a magical combination of storytelling, puppetry and music for 2 to 5 year olds at Stockwood Discovery Centre. There are two performances on Sunday 22nd October (11.30am and 2pm) and tickets should be booked in advance here.

African Drumming Workshop at Stockwood Discovery Centre

A child only workshop for children aged 6+ at Stockwood Discovery Centre on 26 October gives children the opportunity to the beautiful djembe drums and learn the intricacies of playing West-African rhythms. The costs £6 per child (plus booking fees) for a 1 hour workshop and you can book in advance for either the 11.30am or 2pm sessions here.

All Aboard! Ship Inspired Carnival Costume Making at Stockwood Discovery Centre

The UK Centre for Carnival Arts is running a ship inspired carnival costume making session at the Stockwood Discovery Centre on Wednesday 25th and Friday 27th October. All ages are welcome and there is a charge of £4 per child for the 1 hour session. There are four different time slots each day (11.30am, 12.30pm. 1.30pm and 2.30pm) and you can book in advance here.

In St Albans

The Big Draw at St Albans Museum and the Verulamium Museum

The St Albans Museum and Gallery and the Verulamium Museum in St Albans are both taking part in The Big Draw during October half term. The theme is “drawing with senses” so pick up a pack at the front desk and try some of the suggestions as you explore and draw. At the St Albans Museum head up to the Assembly Rooms where on Monday – Friday there will be some drawing activities for your to try. Admission to the St Albans Museum is free. There is a charge to visit the Verulamium Museum if you are not a St Albans resident. Suitable for all ages. At the St Albans Museum The Big Draw is available Monday 23rd to Friday 27th October from 11am to 5pm. At the Verulamium Museum it is 12 noon to 4.30pm Monday to Friday and additionally 11 am to 3.30pm on Saturday 28th October.

Paint your own Mug at the St Albans Museum

To fit in with their Time for Tea exhibition children age 8+ are invited to paint their own mug on Tuesday 24th October at the St Albans Museum. All materials and instructions will be provided at a cost of £7.50 per child. You will need to place your mug in the oven at home afterwards to make it dishwasher proof. The sessions run either at 1.45pm – 3pm or 3pm – 4.15pm. Pre-booking is essential here.

Make your own Tea Pet at St Albans Museum

Apparently in the Gong-Fu tea ceremony there is often a small figurine on the side of the tray, made from leftover clay, to keep the drinker company, meaning they never drink alone. This is a tea pet. Children aged 5+ will be able to learn all about tea pets before making one of their own out of polymer clay. You’ll then need to take your pet home and pop them in the oven to make them hard. Sessions run from 1.45 – 2.45pm and 3 – 4pm on Wednesday 25th October at the St Albans Museum. Pre-booking is available here.

Make a Roman Oil Lamp at the Verulamium Museum, St Albans

Children aged 4+ are invited to the Verulamium Museum in St Albans on Thursday 26th October to make a clay lamp, just like those the Romans used to use to light their homes, fuelled by olive oil. Sessions run at 10.30am, 11.30am and 12.30pm at a cost of £5 per lamp. Please note that you will need to pay museum admission on top of this charge. Pre-book here.

Toddler Tales at the Verulamium Museum: If I had a Vampire Bat

Part of the monthly Tots Tales session at the Verulamium Museum on Friday 27th October the focus story is If I had a Vampire Bat. Children between the ages of 2 and 4 are invited to enjoy the story before learning all about vampire bats and take part in some seasonal spookiness. £5 per child(ren) attending. Sessions at either 10.30am or 1.15pm. Pre-booking is available here.

Further afield

Nocturnal Animals at the National History Museum, Tring

A half hour session for children aged 5+ to immerse themselves in the world of nocturnal animals and get hands on with the museum’s specimens. Tickets cost £2 each and can be purchased from the shop on the day. Sessions run at various times on Tuesday 24th, Wednesday 25th and Thursday 26th October. Full details (including session times) are available here.

Apple Pressing and Juice Tasting at the National History Museum, Tring

As part of Tring’s famous Apple Fair, visitors get the chance to peel, core, cut and squeeze apples to make tasty apple juice, before giving it a taste test in the museum’s outdoor area for FREE on Friday 27th October from 10am to 3.30pm. Full details here.

Museum by Torchlight at the National History Museum Tring

On Friday 27th October the National History Museum at Tring is opening its doors after hours for children aged 5+ to explore the galleries by torchlight. Fancy dress is encouraged and children can also create their own scary animal to take home. For £1 there is an additional spooky challenge they can complete. Tickets are FREE buy need to be booked here.

Waddesdon Manor’s Haunted Half Term

For all of half term children get into the house and grounds at Waddesdon for free with a paying adult. There’s a Trick or Treat Skeleton Trail (£3 per child) where children have to find spooky skeletons around the grounds and work out if their skeleton facts are trick (false) or treat (true). There’s a sweet treat from the Waddesdon chef as a prize at the end for correct answers.

On the 21st and 22nd October Zoolab allow you to get up close end hands on with exotic animals in they Creepy Critters show. Suitable for all ages the shows take place at 11.00am, 11.55am, 12.50pm, 2.20pm & 3.15pm. A small event charge is advised and pre booking is essential.

There is a face painter on site on the 28th and 29th October to help children have a spooky makeover. Separate charges apply for this.

Details of all the Waddesdon Haunted Half Term activities are available here along with details of (a rather pricey!) Spooky Afternoon Tea in the Manor Restaurant.

Half Term activities at Milton Keynes Museum

In addition to the regular hands on activities for kids at the Milton Keynes Museum they will also be open all week with spooky Halloween themed crafts and pottery workshops. The Concrete Circus will also be returning to the Museum to keep everyone entertained with workshops throughout the week. Full details here. Usual ticket prices apply, but remember that you pay once and then can return for a year at no additional cost. If you go now your ticket will also cover Christmas opening and all next summer holidays!

All details were correct at the time of writing, but please do go and check with the event organiser beforehand. Penny Travels takes no responsibility for changes that take place after the publication of this article. October Half Term in Dunstable.

If there’s a local event that I haven’t included here then please drop an email to penny@pennytravels.co.uk

Watford Miniature Railway

October 9, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

Since term started and the youngest started school we’ve been staying home a bit more on the weekends. Catching up on homework, housework and sleep. This weekend though we decided it was time to venture out a bit more and find some trains. A quick trip down the M1 brought us to Watford, Cassiobury Park and the rather excellent Watford Miniature Railway.

I’ve always been a huge fan of Cassiobury Park as there’s just so much there to see and do. The railway has always been a draw with the kids, although with Covid and everything else we haven’t actually been all that much in the last few years. This weekend was time to rectify that though.

Watford Miniature Railway – facts and figures

Located right next to the children’s playground the station for Watford Miniature Railway is a simple affair.

A notice board at Watford Miniature Railway and a view towards the platform area

First opened in 1959 the route is now 915 meters long, with a ride time of approximately 6 minutes. The track itself is 10 1/4 inch gauge (260mm in modern terms) and a variety of diesel and steam locos run on weekends and during school holidays. At the end of the platforms is a small turntable for turning the loco around at the end of a run.

The railway has a pretty comprehensive webpage with details of all their locos, a bit of history and also all the practical stuff you need to know before visiting. There’s also an online shop if you want a little souvenir of your visit.

Practical need to know

The great thing about Watford Miniature Railway is that it just works. Everything’s straightforward and as a parent with little train fans that just makes it all a breeze. It costs £2.50 per person (adult or child) to ride on the railway (with under 2s free) and you can pay with either cash or card. There’s even a £20 option to be able to ride 10 times! There’s no real timetable as such they just run when they’re ready to. You can leave scooters and bikes at the station (at your own risk – although a staff member does stay there) and there’s lots to spot as you go round in a couple of loops before returning to the station.

The notice board and accompanying chalk board as you enter the railway station

The railways opening days and times are on their website. Occasionally the weather (rain, wind or snow) can mean they need to close, but they’re very good at sharing information like that on their active Facebook page. They also tell you on there if they’re planning to run steam or not.

Our visit

A view from the train along teh tracks seeing the train ahead go round a bend.

After a walk along the neighbouring Grand Union Canal we headed back to the station and were able to get on a training pretty much straight away. The Conway Castle was the diesel running whilst we were there and did a fine job taking us around. From my last visit, it was lovely to see several little gnomes and other animals in the woods on our route and the youngest particularly liked all the smiley faces on tree stumps that we went past. For the adults seeing the engine sheds and another diesel (that I’ve since learnt came from the Wells Harbour Railways that we used to visit quite a bit as my in-laws live that way) was a highlight.

Engine sheds and Densil, a Diesel engine

I genuinely wish more parks had miniature railways like this, as they’re always a highlight for the whole family. I was delighted to pick up a little leaflet at the station too – a fantastic list from Britain’s Great Little Railways of places for us to visit in the future!

Bletchley Park

September 15, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

Bletchley Park, just outside Milton Keynes, was the wartime secret home of Britain’s code breakers. It has gone from a place whose very existence wasn’t ever acknowledged to a top visitor attraction, and in my mind it’s a must visit for anyone with an interest in war time history.

The front of the Manor House at Bletchley Park

What was done at Bletchley Park?

During the Second World War, Bletchley Park was the centre of all Allied code-breaking efforts. It housed the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) who worked to decode the communications of Axis powers. Most famously they cracked the German Enigma and Lorenz codes at Bletchley. The GC&CS later turned into what is today known as GCHQ – the Government Communication Headquarters.

Bletchley employed some of the brightest minds available, but with the vast number of messages that needed decrypting it was soon realised that working through everything manually was simply not sustainable. Instead they started developing machinery to help with decryption and this work culminated in the development of Colossus, the world’s first programmable digital electronic computer.

Part of an infographic showing a variety of numbers about Bletchley Park. This includes the number of people working there, where they came from in terms of previous roles and whether they were male or female.

At its peak nearly 9,00 men and women (the majority women) worked at Bletchley, and it is thought that the work they did helped to shorten the war by between two and four years. It’s incredibly really just how much was done there, in absolute secrecy from those living outside the park.

The physical location of Bletchley Park was perfect because it is situated close to Bletchley train station, which was then on the Varsity line which ran between Oxford and Cambridge. Students and graduates from both these universities were exactly the kind of people that they wanted to work at Bletchley. Bringing with them incredible skills in mathematics, logic and languages.

Saving Bletchley Park

Today we know all about the work that was done at Bletchley Park and even those who haven’t visited might be able to speak of Enigma and even know that Alan Turing worked there. There was a real risk though that the Bletchley Park story might have gone untold. In 1990 the huts at Bletchley were being considered for demolition and had it not been for the work of the Bletchley Park Trust (formed in 1992) it is quite possible that the whole site might have been redeveloped.

Grey nondescript looking squat government buildings. They have a bit of a military look about them.

Funding remained a huge issue and great efforts went into approaching large technical companies whose own existence stemmed from some of the work done at Bletchley. Most notably Google who donated £550,000 and in doing so helped to unlock £4.2m from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The Covid pandemic also had an impact on Bletchley and has affected some of their plans going forwards due to reduced visitor numbers during lockdowns and subsequent restrictions. Facebook were one of the companies that provided a financial contribution to help them recover from the pandemic.

Bletchley as a visitor attraction

In the end it was an £8 million restoration project that resulted in Bletchley Park opening as a visitor attraction in June 2014. Nearly ten years later it is now an award winning visitor attraction which tells an incredibly important story about the site’s role in World War Two, along with the stories of the men and women who worked there.

Open every day (with only three exceptions at Christmas) it is obviously an attraction that appeals to those with an interest in wartime or military history, but its appeal goes wider than that with the way that it includes exhibitions on the technology and also the social history around its years of operation.

There are some lovely little personal touches to give you an idea of how they managed to run such a large operation there, and the lives of the people who worked there. A favourite of mine has to be this meno about tea and coffee cups.

A memo about a shortage of coffee cups at Bletchley Park.

Visiting Bletchley Park

It is impossible to summarise in just one blog post everything that there is to see at Bletchley Park. There are so many different exhibition spaces that you could easily spend a whole day at Bletchley and still come away thinking that you haven’t had chance to see everything. It’s for this reason that your ticket is actually valid for a whole year, and this is something that I will definitely be taking advantage of over the next twelve months. My most recent visit overlapped with my mum going there on a trip of her own, so some of our time was spent chatting over a cup of tea in the cafe. As a result I only really got time to properly so three sections. There are so many wonderful hands on exhibits that help you understand code breaking and forming intelligence from what you intercept that you could easily spend days doing everything there.

Multimedia Guides

A phone sized multimedia device with headphones plugged into it. On the screen you can see a variety of menu options including mansion, lake and station x.

All visitors are offered a free multimedia guide to use during their visit. This phone sized device has headphones and a lanyard so that you can wear it round your neck. Available in several different languages, there is a simple to use picture menu that allows you to choose points around the site in your own order. There are videos and eye-witness accounts from people who worked at Bletchley and it really does enhance your visit.

Practical Visitor Information

Bletchley Park’s own website contains much of the information that you might need to plan a visit. Everything from opening hours to ticket prices. You can also book admission tickets online. It is worth noting that if you are a local resident (postcodes within a 10 mile radius) then you get a 50% discount. There are also reductions for English Heritage members. Under 12s are free of charge.

Whilst young children are welcome and might enjoy some of the hands on exhibits and the play area I honestly think that older children and adults would get more out of the museum if they are able to concentrate on what they are seeing there. This is not meant to be an anti-children statement – I’m a mum of three – but just a practical point based on my own visitor experience. There is so much to take in and absorb that trying to do so whilst having an eye on a young child is very hard.

The outside of a low squat building which contains an exhibition about the park's role in D Day.

As well as two cafes and an outdoor snack bar there are a large number of picnic benches on the lawn near the lake that people can picnic at. For something a bit special it is also possible to book afternoon tea at the Manor House on most weekends.

The gift shop contains a range of war time related souvenirs alongside a wonderful range of books and puzzle books. I quite simply could have spent a fortune in there!

The Bletchley site is large, so make sure that you wear decent footwear when visiting. Toilets are located at numerous points around the site and are generally well marked on maps and signs. In generally accessibility is good with automatic doors and ramps to get into buildings. Most of the videos have subtitles and I spotted large print guides in various areas. Further accessibility information is available on their website.

Want to visit somewhere else local?

Why not take a look at where else I have visited in Buckinghamshire, or the neighbouring counties of Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.

Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford

September 7, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

When you visit Oxford you can be forgiven for being dazzled by all the University’s spectacular architecture and all the historic colleges, but make sure you don’t forget about the city’s museums. The Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the Pitt Rivers Museum may be two separate museums, but they are co-located on the same site, and to get from one to the other it really is as simple as walking through an interconnecting door.

Oxford University Museum of Natural History

When you arrive at the museum site it is the Museum of Natural History that you will visit first, for the simple fact that you have to walk through it to get to the Pitt Rivers Museum.

As you walk up the steps and into the main museum hall, the size, height and brightness of the hall takes your breath away. Especially on a sunny summer’s day like the one we visited on.

The main hall of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. It shows a tall space, more like e railway station than a museum, with light flooding in through a glass ceiling. Various Natural History exhibits can be seen in the foreground.

I’m not going to pretend that it can compete with the scale of London’s Natural History Museum, but if you’re looking for somewhere a bit more compact then this is actually the perfect museum to visit. Most importantly for many little ones visiting – there are dinosaurs!

What is there to see?

Originally established in 1860 to draw together scientific studies from across the University of Oxford, the museum’s strap line today is “Home to Earth, science and nature”. In addition to the impressive fossils and skeletons on display, my daughter was amazed to be able to see so many different butterflies and other insects and she took a particular interest in counting how many different pigeons she could spot in the bird section of the museum.

The skeleton of a dinosaur at the museum.

Some of the museum’s displays have been refreshed recently and there are now two large plesiosaur skeletons that you can marvel at, as well as Mary Anning’s ichthyosaur.

The architecture of the museum

It’s impossible to ignore the fabric of this museum. There’s something about the roof structure that makes me (and others) think about some of the impressive railway architecture that you see at stations like St Pancras, and it was a bit of an experiment sitting alongside the Victorian Neo-gothic stone architecture holding it up. I noticed as we went around that the pillars are all made of different materials, from across the country. The geological artefacts built into the museum itself.

A view across some of the display cases, showing off the architecture of teh building, in particular the columns.

My photos don’t do it proper justice, but this video is fantastic to give you a taste for what it’s like, and to show you some of the hidden features that you might otherwise overlook.

You can also learn more about the architecture of the Museum of Natural History on their website here.

Facilities at the museum

In addition to a small gift shop by the entrance there is also a cafe on level one of the museum building, looking down over the main hall. Toilets and baby changing facilities are also available. Whilst eating and drinking is not allowed in the museum, you can eat a picnic on the lawn outside the front of the building and whilst we were there many did this.

Out the front of the museum was also a lovely independent coffee van that sold hot and cold drinks as well as snacks. The queue of people who obviously work and study nearby suggests they were very good.

Visiting the Museum of Natural History

It is free to visit the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, but there is a suggested donation of £5 to help them cover their costs. You don’t need to book and more details can be found on the museum’s website.

Kids want to know more?

There are some family trails for the museum that you can either print out before you arrive, or they have printed versions at the information n desk in the museum. And if your little ones are impressed by the ichthyosaur and want to learn more about Mary Anning then the Little People, Big Dreams book on her is excellent. The museum’s website also details any family friendly activities that they put on in school holidays.

The Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford

A door at the back of the Museum of Natural History leads into the Pitt Rivers Museum and as you step through the doorway it is very obvious that you are entering somewhere with a very different feeling.

A double wooden door set into a stone wall. Through teh door you can just see some museum display cases. Above the door are the words "Pitt Rivers Collection" and this door leads from teh maim hall of teh Oxford University Museum of Natural History to the Pitt Rivers Museum.

The Pitt Rivers Museum lacks the bright open space of its neighbour the Museum of Natural History and instead visitors are presented with quite a dark space that is absolutely rammed full of artefacts. Housing the University of Oxford’s archaeological and anthropological collections there is so much to see that it can be a bit daunting knowing where to look first.

An uncomfortable initial experience

As is traditional when visiting somewhere with an excited young child we didn’t really go round the museum in the suggested order and as a result of that I actually felt a bit uncomfortable about some of what I was looking at, until I found the relevant explanatory panels. The museum frankly accepts on one of its panels that “The history of the Pitt Rivers Museum is tied to British Imperial expansion and the colonial mandate to collect and classify objects from all over the world. The processes of colonial “collecting” were often inequitable and even violent towards those people being colonised.” They go on to talk about this uncomfortable past for the museum, and how they are working through the collections, how they are presented, and how they are explained through a present day lens. You can ream more about the museum’s commitment to change on their website.

My favourite exhibits

In a museum that contains so much it can be overwhelming to try to take it all in. There were a few exhibits though that did stick with me when we left.

A display case full of slightly creepy looking masks with a four year old girl looking on.

The hands of a four year old child as she draws a brightly coloured mask with coloured pencils.

My daughter loved the variety of masks that the museum displays, and when we stumbled into a school holiday drawing session for children it was a mask that she chose to design. Her’s wasn’t quite was freaky as some of the ones on display (thankfully!) but the museum also had some excellent drawing prompts for children of all ages to encourage them to look at the museum’s exhibits carefully.

A museum display case showing and explaining Chinese pigeon whistles which were attached to pigeons in China.

For me though whilst the pigeon whistles fascinated me, I was speechless at the sight of a man’s parka made of seal intestines from Alaska. Purchased by the Pitt Rivers Museum in 1908 it is described as such:

“The cuffs and hem of this parka feature a complex border of fourteen thin bands of parchment-like sealskin dyed red and black. These are over woven with fine caribou-hair embroidery in geometric patterns. There are more than 20,000 embroidery stitches in the border alone”

A museum display case showing off the parka that I have described. It has a hood and is of a relatively simple shape with arms. It looks like it more practical than decorative from a distance.

Let that just sink in. Over 20,000 embroidery stitches in the border alone. And made in or before 1908. So, no electric light. In Alaska, so probably dark for half the year. The work that must have gone into that absolutely fascinates me, and I’m left wondering why it was felt necessary to decorate a parka so elaborately. I wish I knew.

A close up of intricate embroidery on the border of the parka.

Facilities at the Pitt Rivers Museum

With the Pitt Rivers Museum connected to the Museum of Natural History it shares many of the same facilities. It has its own toilets and a small gift shop, but for refreshments you are directed to either the cafe in the Museum of Natural History or back outside for a picnic space and alternative coffee provision.

Wondering where else to visit?

Why not take a look at other places we have visited in Oxfordshire or the neighbouring county of Buckinghamshire. You could also see which other museums we have visited around the world.

National Trust Dyrham Park – perfect family stop on the M4

August 12, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

On a recent road trip from Bedfordshire down to Exeter we needed to find somewhere to stop to let the four year old stretch her legs and run off some energy. And for us older folk in the car to have a cuppa and a loo break! Whilst motorway service stations can be OK if you just need the loo and a caffeine hit (although they vary so much in quality!) when we want a paper leg stretch I always prefer to find a National Trust site near the motorway. Looking on the National Trust app for the perfect family stop on the M4 I came across Dyrham Park and then had a deja vu moment when I realise that a pre-Covid trip to Devon had us stopping here before!

Dyrham Park is only one and a half mies from Junction 18 of the M4. From the motorway you turn onto the A46 and the entrance is straight off there. Follow the brown signs from when you come off the motorway and you can’t go wrong. Being a National Trust site entrance and parking is free for National Trust members.

What makes the perfect family stop?

For us the criteria are quite simple. Decent toilets, a playground, somewhere to get a cup of tea and an ice cream. Dyrham Park has all that and more.

What facilities are at Dyrham Park?

When you arrive off the A46 you head straight into the car park and next to that is the visitors centre with a toilet block adjacent to it. Parking can be paid for at the pay and display machines in the car park. If you are a member you need to scan your membership card at the machines and still display a ticket in your car.

This top visitor centre is where you can buy tickets to visit the park. They also have a few small gifts on sale.

A view down towards the main house at Dyrham Park. From the angle of the photo you can see that you have to walk downhill to get to the house.

From here there is a walk to reach the main house part of the park. This is down a relatively steep hill, but there is an electric mobility bus that can help those you need it to get down and up again.

At the main house site there is a cafe, gift shop, more toilets and also a secondhand book shop. In addition to this there is a second site called the Old Lodge which was refurbished in 2022 and contains a small cafe, as well as plenty of space for picnics (both outdoors and undercover), ice creams, more toilets and a decent sized playground.

A wooden playground featuring a variety of balancing and climbing opportunities for young children and a wooden pig. All surrounded by a bark chipping ground covering.

Our stop at Dyrham Park

For us Dyrham Park was the perfect stop-off point. The weather remained dry and our four year old was able to walk (with a few moans admittedly!) from the car park to Old Lodge, then down to the house, and finally back to the car park. Old Lodge was a brilliant place to have a picnic. With some grey clouds gathering overhead we knew we could always head undercover if we suddenly needed to do so.

A smiling four year old girl wearing blue leggings and a long sleeved t-shirt balancing on a tightrope whilst holding on to some rope supports.

The playground gave our daughter lots of climbing opportunities, alongside some lovely role play ones too. The large logs around the edge of the playground were also well positioned for parents to be able to sit on them and keep an eye on their kids.

Had we wanted a longer stop we could have visited the house itself, but as it was a good walk and a look round the secondhand bookshop was enough and we were soon on our way feeling refreshed, and somewhat invigorated from the hill climb back to the car park!

National Trust Passport Stamps

If you, like us, collect stamps in a National Trust passport for all the places you visit, then it’s worth knowing that the shop at the main house and the one at the visitor centre at the top of the hill have different stamps. All to do with them technically being in different postcodes according to one staff member. Another told us that one is actually the “old” stamp and another the new. Whatever the real reason is, if you’ve got a NT passport then it’s worth knowing.

A page inside a National Trust passport showing two different Dyrham Park stamps and a date stamp.

A National Trust passport is also a great way of keeping track of which National Trust sites you’ve been to. This helped us prove that we’d been to Dyrham Park before as we’d got our passport stamped there – although only from one shop!

Looking for somewhere to stop off somewhere else?

If you’re looking for a family stop on another motorway, the National Trust have compiled a list on their own website of places to stop. I can already see that some of our favourite stops like Clumber Park and Belton House (with the BEST National Trust playground ever!) are missing from the list, so as we continue to travel the country I’m going to try and compile our own list of where is a good family stop on the M4, M5, M1, A1, M25 …

I hope this post has helped you find the perfect family stop on the M4 – Dyrham Park.

The Postal Museum and Mail Rail

August 11, 2023 by Penny Leave a Comment

London’s Postal Museum opened at its current Clerkenwell site in July 2017 and tells the story of the the postal system in the UK. One of the main attractions at the site is a 1km section of the Mail Rail underground train network that visitors can ride on. The museum prides itself in being an attraction for the whole family and it is packed with interactive exhibits that allow children to get very hands on. In addition there is an onsite role play area for children under the age of 8 called Sorted!

An image painted onto the side of a brick building showing an old fashioned Postman holding a letter which it looks like he is about to place into a post box. You can see a bi-plane flying in the sky in the picture and in the top right hand corner is a Penny Black Postage Stamp.

What’s at the Postal Museum?

Visits to the Postal Museum can broken down into three different sections.

Firstly there is the old underground rail system used by Royal Mail for transporting mail across central London; Mail Rail. Museum visitors can ride on the Mail Rail trains – converted to carry passengers instead of mail sacks – and during the 15 minute journey learn about the history of Mail Rail and why it was such a valuable system. Because of the way tickets work, Mail Rail is the first part of the museum that most visitors go to. You book a timed slot for riding on Mail Rail and this is what you book your museum tickets around.

In the same building as Mail Rail is Sorted! – a hands on role play area for children under the age of 8.

The main part of the museum is diagonally across the road from the building containing Mail Rail. That makes it sound further than it is, as in reality the road in question is only a small, quiet road so it does only take about a minute to walk between the two sites. This is where you find all the main exhibits and the “museum” part of The Postal Museum.

How Postal Museum tickets work

When you buy a ticket to The Postal Museum it gets you a ride on the Mail Rail and also entry to the main museum site. Your ticket allows you to revisit the museum as many times as you like in 12 months, but you can only ride on the Mail Rail once, on the day your ticket is first valid.

You book a time slot for riding on the Mail Rail and you’re asked to arrive 10 minutes before your scheduled time.

To visit Sorted! you need to buy a separate ticket per child and you have to book a time slot. Sorted! is an additional charge, and it is possible to visit Sorted! without going to any other part of the museum. If you are also visiting the museum then you get your Sorted! ticket at a discounted price.

Mail Rail

Seen by many as the main attraction at The Postal Museum, Mail Rail is something not to be missed. A 2ft narrow gauge driverless underground system originally ran for 10.5km with 8 stations. This allowed mail to be moved around London far faster than doing so at street level. The railway ran from its inception in 1927 until it finally closed in 2003.

When the original railway as mothballed, much of the original infrastructure and rolling stock was kept and that now enables visitors to be taken along a 1km section of the route in adapted versions of the trains that now carry passengers instead of mail bags, and have drivers at the front. During a 15 minute journey visitors are told the history of the line and in a couple of points the train stops to allow films to be projected on to the walls, showing what the railway used to be like, and explaining the role it played in carrying mail across the capital.

Once you’ve completed your ride on the train itself, there’s a lovely small exhibition space containing artefacts from the railway. It’s clear from the exhibits that people who work on the Mail Rail have been heavily involved in creating this exhibition, and it’s lovely to see things like a homemade engineer’s toolbox that one man created from an old decommissioned carriage. The labelled tobacco tins containing various small parts reminded me so much of my dad’s garage.

A picture of the top of an old Mail Rail carriage that was converted into an engineers trolly by someone who worked there. You can see an assortment of bits and bobs including a tin of swarfega, leads for a multimeter and an array of old tobacco tins

The whole experience is fascinating and a must do for anyone who loves something a bit geeky. The museum’s website provides some great details about the practicalities of riding the Mail Rail and accessibility information.

There is a gift shop located in the Mail Rail building.

The main Postal Museum

Once you’ve been on the Mail Rail you head to the main museum building across the road. This is where the main exhibits that make up the museum are. Although the total floor space isn’t huge, there is a wonderful collection of artefacts from the first letters and stamps, right through to the latest ones produced with King Charles III on them.

A display showing a variety of old Post Office and Royal Mail advertising posters at the Postal Museum.

The history of the Postal system in the UK is fascinating and, even in these days of email and social media, it clearly comes across about what a crucial part of the infrastructure the postal system was. It made me feel a bit sad to realise just how much we’ve lost really. Seeing in particular the adorable little Post Bus really brought it home, as in a time when rural bus services have been cut more than ever before something like a Post Bus network would help so many.

A very cute and cheery looking red and yellow Royal Mail Post Bus.

For kids visiting the museum there was so much that was hands on for them to touch and play with, that it easily kept all three entertained in different ways. The activity book was a nice touch as it featured things that all ages could get involved in, whilst also being quite educational as well.

There is a small cafe in the foyer area of the museum along with a gift shop.

Sorted!

In addition to the main museum there is a role play area for children aged 8 and under located in the same building as the Mail Rail, called Sorted! You need to book a 45 minute slot for sorted and this can be done via the museum’s website. It is possible to either book just to go to Sorted! or to add a visit on to buying museum tickets. If you do the latter then it only costs a couple of pounds per child for your Sorted! visit.

Sorted! gives children a huge number of role play opportunities, all around a postal theme. Our four year old thoroughly enjoyed it, in particular because she could dress for some of the roles.

A four year old girl wearing a child sized Royal Mail high-via jacket is hauling a play postal sack up after it has been raised to first floor level on a pulley system. Just next to where she is doing this you can see a red slide leading downstairs.

What we thought

We absolutely loved the Postal Museum. This was actually our second visit, but the first with children in tow. Things have changed a bit in the years since we first came, but actually coming again with kids made us realise just how child friendly it is. There was so much for all three kids to interact with that they all had great fun. The pneumatic tubes were a huge hit – not just for our kids, but all the ones we saw playing with them. The children also enjoyed quite a few of the other interactive exhibits, as well as being interested in quite a lot of what they saw there.

A blonde four year old girl smiling at the camera whilst wearing a vintage style GPO uniform of coat and hat, remade in a child's size.

The kids activity booklet that they were given when they arrived was also really well put together. Some things that were easy enough for the four year old to do without much assistance, but other bits that the 13 year old also enjoyed trying to find as we went around.

How to find The Postal Museum

The Postal Museum isn’t right next to any tube stops, but please don’t let that put you off at all. We travelled to Farringdon station (Circle, Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City, National Rail and Elizabeth Line) and walked from there in less than 15 minutes. And that was with a 4 year old who doesn’t always necessarily walk in a straight line! Most of the streets you walk along are quite small and quiet, especially on a weekend.

For more detailed directions to get there try using the TfL Journey Planner and enter “The Postal Museum” as your destination. That way the planner will show you buses and walking instructions too.

Preparing kids to visit The Postal Museum

When we visited there was a fantastic activity pack for children which had them spotting things around the museum. This, and quite a few of the information panels for children around the museum, are all based around the character of The Jolly Postman. The sight of him, and a picture of kids’ other favourite postman, Postman Pat, just inside the entrance to the museum was enough to convince my four year old that this was a place that would interest her. If your little one isn’t familiar with The Jolly Postman before your visit then it may well be worth introducing them.

On their website the museum have done a huge amount of work with Ambitious about Autism to produce a series of resources to help support autistic and neurodiverse visitors to the museum. This includes visual stories and pre-visit films. At the museum itself we saw a basket of ear defenders available near the queue for the Rail Mail and they also have sensory bags available to borrow, along with lanyards which can help staff identify visitors that may require additional support.

Want to read more?

Why not take a look at other museums we have visited, or see what else we’ve enjoyed doing in London.