Museums

Museums

What are they and what do they involve?

Museums are venues with the primary purpose of exhibiting items of interest, often of a historical nature. The exact focus of a museum will vary, but they always offer educational insights into their artefacts and can include extra activities such as workshops and guided tours! Nationally-recognised museums dominate the school trip agenda and often feature amongst the most visited venues in Britain.

Incredibly there are museums for pretty much everything you can think of in the UK - from Prams to Anaesthetic, Radar to Pencils, Locks to Lawnmowers, Mustard to Surfing, Straw to Dog Collars (the canine kind), Teapots to Gas, or Magic to Embroidery. Search our list of venues for topics these fantastic, quirky places feature and you'll be surprised what pops up! It might inspire a new approach to a curriculum topic or a different slant on your locality.

What are the benefits?

A museum can be a highly educational place, especially for those with prior interest in the subjects on display. Taking a student group that have been covering a specific historical event or time period to a relevant museum will enable them to really connect with the subject and create an extra dimension to their education.

What students is it suitable for?

Provided the content of the museum is suitable for the age group, all students can benefit from a trip to a museum!

Costs?

Some museums are free for the public to access but there are some venues that have admission costs due to the specific nature of the exhibit – make sure to thoroughly check out the prices of museums in your area.

Safety Implications?

Museums can be quite large and confusing venues, so make sure your group of students is properly supervised to ensure nobody gets separated from the group!

Accreditations?

There is a national accreditation scheme in operation for museums - find out more HERE about Accredited Museums.

Venues for this Category

Located on the ground floor of the former Brechin Town House, on the west side of the High Street in the centre of the town, Brechin Museum has displays highlighting the history of the town from the 10th century through to the present day.

Signal Tower Museum is located near Arbroath’s picturesque and busy harbour, in a complex of buildings originally used as the shore station and family accommodation for the Bell Rock Lighthouse. Built in 1813, Signal Tower served the lighthouse until 1955.

King’s Museum lies at the heart of the University's Old Aberdeen campus. As well as being Scotland's newest museum, it may also be the oldest as its origins lie in a museum collection established in King's College in 1727.

Selected mineral and fossil material is on display in the corridors of the Department of Geology and Petroleum Geology in the Meston Building, Old Aberdeen. Collection highlights are the Gordon Collection of Minerals and the Lyon Collection of Rhynie Chert Devonian plant material.

Established in the 1870s, the Anatomy Museum has a wide-ranging collection used extensively for medical teaching and training, including skeletal material, fluid-preserved specimens of human tissue, historical and modern models and works on paper. Of special interest are a set of 19th century anatomical watercolours and a series of anatomical drawings by Alberto Morrocco.

The centre offers an interesting insight into the social and natural history of Tomintoul and Glenlivet. It includes a reconstructed farmhouse kitchen and blacksmith’s workshop. The centre is open seasonally from April until the end of October.

Schools

Aberdeen Football Club Collection

Collection of football memorabilia associated with Aberdeen Football Club and it’s supporters. Please note that viewings are currently by appointment only.

The museum is currently closed

University collection: art, design, architecture, pharmacy, engineering collections

The University holds an extensive collection of artistic and historical artefacts. These include paintings, models, teaching equipment, student drawings and photographs that will allow staff, students and visitors to explore Robert Gordon University’s history.

The Centre is housed in part of a Victorian school dating from 1837. The Corbett Museum offers changing displays relating to the history of the area – domestic and farming, peoples and their trades, education and the kirk. Visitors can view the extensive photographic archive and browse the comprehensive collection of newspaper cuttings.

Kinnaird Head was the first lighthouse to be built by the Northern Lighthouse Board in 1787 and the only lighthouse to be built on top of a fortified castle. In 1824, the lighthouse was reconstructed inside Kinnaird Castle by Robert Stevenson, engineer to the Northern Lighthouse Board.

Relive the great days of steam trains at the former Maud Railway Station

Relive the great days of steam trains at the former Maud Railway Station. Sound effects add to the nostalgia of varied displays of railway memorabilia. GNSR memorabilia; photographs of Maud railway heydays; browsing corner with books and photographs.

Maud Railway Museum is housed in the former station buildings at Maud Junction in rural Aberdeenshire.

Situated in the Railway Station building, the volunteer-run museum encompasses both railway and local Insch history, including a scale model of the railway, photographs, artefacts, archive material and everyday stories of how life used to be in Insch.

Relive the early days of the industrial revolution at Garlogie Mill. See the rare beam engine - the only one of its type to have survived intact on its original location - which powered the woollen Mill.

Materials related to the history of Garioch.

Step back in time through centuries of history at Fraserburgh Heritage Centre

Step back in time through centuries of history at Fraserburgh Heritage Centre. From the bustling quayside in the age of sail to the haute couture of dress designer Bill Gibb and the exciting adventure of Antarctic exploration, the 4 star visitor attraction offers a wealth of exhibits and a fascinating experience for all the family.

Founded in 1871, the Falconer Museum is one of the oldest in the district. The museum houses a wealth of Moray’s heritage and features displays on local history, social history, geology and archaeology.

Elgin Museum is owned and managed by The Moray Society and is Scotland’s oldest independent museum. It is housed in a Grade A listed building, designed as a museum by local architect Thomas Mackenzie, and built in the Italianate style in the golden local sandstone. It opened in 1843. 

The Museum of Scotland's Catholic Heritage

Blairs Museum contains spectacular collections spanning more than 500 years while the beauty of St. Mary’s Chapel never fails to make an impression.

Blairs Museum is home to a magnificent collection of paintings, church textiles, sacred and domestic silver and Jacobite memorabilia belonging to the Scottish Roman Catholic Church.

Schools

A local museum with material relating to the social and natural history of the town

A local museum with material relating to the social and natural history of the town and immediate district. Collections include scientific instruments which belonged to the astronomer James Ferguson and the natural history collection of Thomas Edward.

Gateway to Royal Deeside

Learn about the history of Banchory and its most famous son, musician and composer, J. Scott Skinner, the "Strathspey King".

In our permanent collection you will also see:

Discover the wealth of Peterhead's maritime history in one of Aberdeenshire's oldest museums. See models showing the development of Peterhead fishing boats and find out about:

Relive the story of our famous farming past in the beautiful surroundings of Aden Country Park

Long famed for high quality Aberdeen-Angus cattle, the North East contains a quarter of Scotland’s arable land and consequently farming is an essential feature of rural life. The award-winning Aberdeenshire Farming Museum at Aden Country Park brings alive the story of this famous farming past in the unique semi-circular Aden Estate home farm.

Access Aberdeen's shipbuilding history through the collections of Aberdeen Maritime Museum

Aberdeen Maritime Museum tells the story of the city's long relationship with the Sea. This award-winning museum is located on the historic Shiprow and incorporates Provost Ross's House, which was built in 1593. The Maritime Museum houses a unique collection covering shipbuilding, fast sailing ships, fishing and port history.

Museum relating to the history of the region. Includes geneaological resources, documentation on local issues, maps and information relating to the Ross of Mull.

Set in a renovated cottage next to a 17th Century corn mill in the village of Bunessan with parking for up to 6 cars and disabled access.

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British schoolgirl assaulted on school trip to Iceland

hotel corridor

A viral video shows a black girl being assaulted by a white woman in a corridor.

Police in Iceland are investigating after a British schoolgirl was slapped and chased by a tour guide in a hotel corridor.

The schoolgirl, 13, who attended Harris Girls’ Academy, was assaulted whilst on a school trip to Iceland to see the Northern Lights. The incident occurred at Hotel Örk, Hveragerdi on 13th October.