home > what we do > raising standards > best practice > Horniman Museum

Hands on Horniman

Hands on Base is a unique learning space within an Heritage Lottery Fund redevelopment of the Horniman Museum in South East London. It is regarded as a centre of excellence for its object-based learning approach.

The Horniman have developed a wide-ranging programme of community engagement which ensures that the museum’s collection of varied objects, which includes ethnography, natural history and musical instruments, is used to engage the diverse south east London community. The ethnographic and musical instrument collections are of national importance, have designated status and are the largest and most comprehensive collections of their type.

The Hands on Base space houses a handling collection of over 3,000 objects, intrinsically linked with the rest of the museum’s diverse collection. The learning experience is as varied as the groups who come to use it – from school groups engaging with objects which inform their learning, to families who are looking for an enjoyable and informative day out.

For those visiting with children who normally want to touch everything in a museum but can’t, Hands on Base is a breath of fresh air. A mother who visited with three children under ten years old said that she loved it. “I’ve never been to anything like this before. It was eclectic. I’m excited about coming back.“ For them, Hands on Base was the best bit of the day at the museum, as the children were able to explore the collection in a far more interactive way.

Engaging the community

Wednesdays are set aside for community groups and they can also book Hands on Base in the evenings for their own facilitated sessions. The Horniman has been using Hands on Base to run a community leader training programme, ‘Community Projects with Our Objects’, for the last 18 months. This involves days when community leaders are trained in how to use the handling collection and the space; they also receive one on one mentoring to put together a project for their specific community group.

The scheme empowers community leaders and brings new audiences to the museum. Community leaders can tailor the sessions for their community to deliver the best possible learning experience.

By working in partnership with specific groups and their needs, the museum has attracted a much more diverse audience. For example, hearing impaired groups are now able to enhance their experience, using visual and tactile cues. Sound, particularly through use of instruments, and smell, which can deepen understanding for the visually impaired, can be incorporated into workshops and story-telling sessions.

An accompanying website Hands Online is nearing completion. The website will be used to add further value to the educational aspects of a visit to the Horniman, particularly for pre- or post-visits for schools, community groups and families. Funding for the website has been made available from Renaissance London.

For more detailed information on Horniman Museum please visit the case study section on the MLA research website.