Children and young people

Museums across the UK will work on ways to use culture to support children in their early years as part of a £1m pilot programme.

Funded by Art Fund, the national charity for art, and Nesta, the UK’s innovation agency for social good, Mini Wonders - the Early Years Innovation in Museums programme aims to support early child development and enhance parent-child interactions.

Designed for children aged between two and four-year-old, the funders say the programme will "blend creativity with well-evidenced messages and strategies to support parents with their children’s social-emotional development".

The ambition is that the research and development process will create an evidence base that will allow the work to be scaled up across the UK.

Jenny Waldman, Director of Art Fund, said: “Museums are inspiring places for children and their families in every part of the UK.

"This exciting project combines the skills and expertise of Art Fund and Nesta, along with eight museums and galleries across the UK, to harness their amazing spaces and collections in a programme designed to break down barriers to opportunity. Together, we will design a way of working that will have real impact where it’s most needed.

“The importance of foundational early-years experiences is crucial to giving the next generation the skills and experience to thrive. This programme and the recent Art Fund Museum of the Year winner, Young V&A, show how a museum can be an agent of change and inspiration to the next generation.”

Ravi Gurumurthy, Chief Executive of Nesta, said: “We are really pleased to be working with Art Fund and these eight amazing museums and galleries from across the UK on this programme.

"The environment and experiences of early childhood shape our brains and bodies, creating the building blocks of our physical, emotional and cognitive skills – but not every child gets what they need to develop during their earliest years."

Museums taking part in the programme are: Amgueddfa Cymru - Museum Wales; Great North Museum: Hancock; Leeds Museums & Galleries; Mansfield Museum; National Galleries of Scotland; Norfolk Museums Service; Tate Britain; and Ulster Museum.

Save the Children has pulled out of an event at London's Science Museum following concerns among its supporters about the institution's sponsors.

The Guardian reports the charity had been due to participate in an event at the museum on Wednesday evening (11 September) looking at some of the most important health challenges facing the world.

A statement issued by Save the Children said that it had wanted to "raise awareness of its global maternal health work, including in Gaza” but it withdrew “following concerns from supporters about one of the museum’s sponsors, in the context of current public campaigns”.

Save the Children did not name the sponsor in question.

However, the museum has been the subject of criticism over its sponsorship by Adani Green Energy, part of the Indian coal-mining and energy conglomerate Adani Group.

Another part of the Adani Group - Adani Defence and Aerospace - has a partnership with the Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.

A Science Museum spokesperson said: “Engaging our audiences with the major challenges of our time is a priority for the museum, and earlier this year we opened a new gallery exploring the urgent energy transition away from fossil fuels that the world needs to see, made possible by generous sponsorship from Adani Green Energy, a renewable energy business.

“We recognise that some campaigners have strong views about sponsorship and wish to see wholesale disengagement from entire sectors. Our trustees disagree with that view and have clearly articulated our approach, both in terms of robust governance and in urging companies, governments and individuals to do more to make the global economy less carbon-intensive.”

Bath & North East Somerset Council has launched a new scheme to enable more school children from across the country to visit the city's Roman Baths and Victoria Art Gallery for free.

Free visits and learning sessions will be available to state-funded primary and secondary schools across the UK, where 30% or more of pupils receive free school meals. 

The scheme is in addition to a current provision offering all school groups in Bath & North East Somerset free entry to both sites, with no additional eligibility criteria.

"High-quality, immersive school trips should be accessible to all students," Paul Roper, Cabinet Member for Economic & Cultural Sustainable Development at the council, said.

"We understand that cost can be a significant barrier for schools, and we hope that our new offer of free entry and free learning sessions for eligible schools will make a difference.

"We are committed to sharing Bath’s rich heritage, and through this new initiative, we aim to ensure that more children can experience the excitement of learning in an unforgettable setting."

Lindsey Braidley, Learning and Participation Manager at Bath’s Heritage Services added, "Experiencing history and art firsthand is invaluable for young learners. Not only do school visits enhance learning, but engaging with heritage also provides significant benefits for health and well-being.

"For many children, a school trip to a museum or gallery might be their only opportunity to discover heritage and culture, and we want to ensure this is available to as many students as possible.

"As well as offering a memorable way to discover history, a visit to the Roman Baths can inspire conversations around culture, science, lifestyle, engineering, health, and other subjects across the curriculum. We look forward to hearing from eligible schools to arrange their free visit.”

More than half of UK school librarians have been asked to remove certain books from circulation, a new survey suggests - with the majority of those requests coming from parents.

The Index on Censorship asked 53 librarians about their experiences of books being challenged. Twenty-eight (53%) said they had been asked to remove books and, of these, 56% said they had acted on the request.

According to the campaign organisation, many books called into question had LGBTQ+ themes, including This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson, Julián is a Mermaid by Jessica Love and the alphabet book ABC Pride by Louie Stowell.

Index on Censorship said other books, including Manga comic books, were removed because of the perceived sexualisation of characters and explicit or violent content.

Books were also challenged over the use of homophobic language, swearing and self-harm discussions.

The organisation notes that in the US, where book censorship is a subject of frequent debate, the American Library Association records requests for bans of specific titles. Equivalent data is not collected in the UK. 

Alison Tarrant, Chief Executive of the UK School Library Association, said: “I doubt this is a new phenomenon. And it’s probably been going on for as long as school libraries have existed. 

“I wonder whether it’s a symptom of the more polarised society that we’re living in now, and that’s why things have got stronger.”

Concern over censorship of LGBTQ+ books for young people was brought to the fore last year after it emerged that the V&A Director Tristram Hunt decided to remove two illustrated books on queer identities, and a trans rights poster, from the Young V&A. The move prompted a backlash from the museum's union members, as well as artists and members of the public.

A two-year project designed to bridge the gap between creative education and employment in the Staines area has been awarded £400,000 from Arts Council England.

Using Staines’ new flagship Surrey County Council library, which is set to open by summer 2025, the Staines Culture Hub will establish a programme of creative activities and performances to provide accessible pathways into the arts, and support improved wellbeing.  

The initiative is being run in partnership by Surrey County Council, Spelthorne Borough Council, Ashford Youth Club and Artswork, a charity that works to make arts more accessible.

Susan Doran, Chair of Spelthorne Borough Council's Community Wellbeing and Housing Committee, said: "We are very excited about the establishment of a culture hub for young people here in Spelthorne. 

"Discovering and growing an interest in the arts can be life enriching and the Hub will offer events, courses, workshops and performances for a range of different skills and disciplines with a focus on showing young people the type of career opportunities that are available in this field. 

"It will be a wonderful addition to the existing services for younger residents in our borough."