Wellcome Collection is proud to have been awarded the inaugural Visitor Accessibility Award at last night’s Museum + Heritage Awards, one of the UK’s most prestigious celebrations of excellence in the cultural sector.
The award recognises the museum and library’s long-term, organisation-wide commitment to making culture more inclusive, and reflects its vision for a world where everyone’s experience of health matters.
The new Visitor Accessibility Award recognises institutions demonstrating exceptional commitment to access and inclusion, recognising those actively breaking down physical barriers and increasing engagement for disabled people to make culture open to all.
Winning this award reflects Wellcome Collection’s long-standing organisation wide dedication to embedding accessibility, equity and inclusion into every aspect of its work, from exhibitions, events and collections to digital platforms, retail spaces, staff training, and communications.
“We are incredibly honoured to receive this award” said Melanie Keen, Director of Wellcome Collection. “This accolade, judged by our peers in the sector, is a powerful recognition of our work to place equity, access and inclusion at the heart of everything we do. Our vision is for a world where everyone’s experience of health matters, and this drives our commitment to creating a museum and library that is welcoming to all, representative of society and responsive to the needs of our visitors. As part of the charitable foundation Wellcome, this award underscores the important role that arts and culture plays in creating a healthier future for everyone. Congratulations to everyone who was recognised last night.”
In awarding Wellcome Collection, the judges described the museum as “a leading light in disability discourse in museums and is pushing the boundaries of what excellent, accessible exhibitions look like.” They went on to say that “The Wellcome Collection also collaborates and shares best practice to help others to achieve the same.”
The Museum + Heritage Awards are widely regarded as one of the leading honours in the UK cultural sector, spotlighting best practice, innovation, and impact across the museum, gallery and heritage landscape.
ENDS