UK-Wide Campaign Launched to Fund Museum Visits for 100,000 Children
By Jill Dando News
British Museum leading philanthropist Frédéric Jousset has launched a major campaign to tackle cultural inequality in the UK by bringing over a hundred thousand children on school trips to museums across the country.
His foundation, Art Explora, teamed up with the British Museum to launch Time Odyssey – a new interactive learning experience for 7-11 year old schoolchildren which takes pupils on a quest through their local museum physically and virtually.
Devon schoolchildren are at the forefront of this major new national campaign.
RAMM has played a pivotal role in the pilot programme and welcomed nearly 544 pupils from 13 local schools — 82% of which had not visited the museum in the last 12 months.
Rural isolation often limits both cultural and educational opportunities, making initiatives like Time Odyssey vital in reconnecting these communities with museums and meaningful learning experiences, and helping pupils broaden their horizons.
Some schools travelled from as far as 80km, thanks to Art Explora’s coach grant scheme which covers the cost of transport and the museum visit for Time Odyssey. The programme expects to take over one hundred thousand children on school trips to museums across the country.
“The visits remain extremely popular and enjoyable for all with some children saying, ‘It’s the best day ever!’”
– Neil Heasman, Time Odyssey coordinator at RAMM
The launch of Art Explora’s Time Odyssey programme comes after new data, commissioned by the charity, shows that school visits have not picked up since the pandemic.
Over 60% of teachers say they had not taken their class to a museum on a school trip in the last 12 months.
Despite 90% of teachers agreeing that every child should visit a museum on a school trip before leaving primary school, 14% of teachers have never taken their class. More than half of the teachers surveyed said that cost is the main barrier with a greater disparity of access for children from lower socio-economic backgrounds outside London.
Frédéric Jousset, President and Founder of Art Explora says:
“School trips offer enrichment that cannot be experienced in the classroom. This should be a fundamental right for young people, not be an optional extra. Time Odyssey levels the playing field, making sure that all children have access to culture, no matter what their background.”
In addition to RAMM, the national programme will deliver impact at Yorkshire Museum, York; The Great North Museum: Hancock, Newcastle upon Tyne; Manchester Museum; South Shields Museum & Art Gallery. World Museum Liverpool, Ulster Museum, and Tees Valley Museums plan to join later this year.
Museum trips are a vital part of education, enriching learning, building cultural capital and fostering creativity.
Students from disadvantaged backgrounds typically benefit most from these experiences as they are less likely to have this opportunity outside sponsored school trips. This exposure can lead to greater appreciation and understanding of different cultures across the world, and a tangible connection to the past.
Art Explora works closely with partner museums to target children at schools with a high percentage of free school meals, as well as schools in rural areas – both identified as schools that typically do not take children on school trips.
Find out more about Time Odyssey at RAMM.
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