Venue Description

Learn all about Pontefract's eventful history! Discover royal links, from the Domesday Book to the Civil Wars. Find out how local people made political history. See how the town grew thanks to the sweet success of liquorice. Pontefract Museum is free entry for all, all year round.

Accessibility

Pontefract Museum is in its own dedicated building. There is level access into the building and throughout. The main entrance is through a pair of non-automatic doors. There is a bell by the main entrance if you need help opening the doors. **Information for wheelchair users and mobility impaired visitors: Pontefract Museum is level access throughout. The foyer floor is from 1904 and made of small smooth mosaic tiles. The main gallery floors are made out of parquet flooring (smooth wooden tiles). There is an initial entrance foyer to the museum. The main gallery is through a set of double doors on your left. These are a little heavy. There will be a member of staff in the welcome space to help you open the doors if you need it. You can reach the temporary exhibition gallery from two places. One is the single door at the back of the main gallery. The second is directly from the foyer. If you turn right from the foyer and go down the corridor, you will find the accessible toilet on your left and the Reference Room on your right. At the end of the corridor is the Glass Room. The doors to the Reference Room and the Glass Room are usually kept propped open. ** Seating There are some plastic seats in the foyer space. There are seats around the activity tables in the main gallery. There are seats beside the AV screen in the Oh yes it is! temporary exhibition. There is seating around the main table in the Reference Room. There is a seat by the light box in the Glass Room. ** Information for blind and partially sighted visitors: Pontefract Museum is level access throughout. The foyer floor is from 1904 and made of small smooth mosaic tiles. The main gallery floors are made out of parquet flooring (smooth wooden tiles). Most of our Visitor Experience Assistants have attended Visual Impairment Training and Sighted Guided Training. We have a braille transcription of the Oh yes it is! pantomime exhibition, and braille labels on the exhibition's dressing-up costumes. We have an audio description guide for the main gallery, and a separate one for the Oh yes it is! temporary exhibition. The audio descriptions are accessed using one of our PenFriend devices. You tap the coloured stickers in a handheld booklet. The PenFriend then reads the description aloud. You can also plug headphones into the PenFriend device. You can use our headphones or bring your own. The audio description guide describes and provides more information about a range of star objects on display. It also guides you around the main gallery space. Ask our friendly Visitor Experience Assistants at the entrance for a PenFriend audio description guide. They can show you how to use it if you need help. **Hands-on elements There are lots of hands-on elements in Pontefract Museum. In the main gallery space there is a mini puppet theatre, hand puppets and story books. There is a dressing up box near the Civil Wars display. There is a raised impression of a Civil War coin from the Ackworth Hoard that you can touch and make a rubbing of. There is a rocking horse that you can touch and ride if you are able. There is also a toy market stall. In the Oh yes it is! temporary exhibition, there are pantomime themed dressing up costumes in a box. These have braille tags on to help you pick the right costume for you! **Lighting Some of our exhibition spaces have low light levels to protect the delicate objects on display. There are magnifying glasses available in our Pick and Mix station by the museum entrance. You can take objects from the Pick and Mix station with you around the galleries. ** Information for d/Deaf and hard of hearing visitors: Audio elements and subtitling: There are audio elements in parts of the exhibition spaces. These are not connected to headphones. Main gallery: There is a film about the Hermitage in the medieval display. There is a screen with 5 short films in the ‘No place like home’ section. Glass room: There is an AV screen with 3 films. All of these films are operated by push buttons. There are no headphones and audio plays out into the gallery. All films subtitled and there are handheld transcription sheets. Oh yes it is! exhibition: There is a small AV screen in the foyer window playing archive clips from past pantomime performances. This is touchscreen. There are headphones. The clips are subtitled but as the footage is old, the audio quality is sometimes lower than usual. The pantomime song is operated by a large yellow button near the small AV screen. There is a brief pause then the audio plays out into the gallery. The song will play twice. There are 3 short films on the large AV screen near the toilet door. These are operated by push button. There are no headphones and the audio plays out into the gallery. The films are all subtitled. ** Information for neurodivergent visitors: Some of our exhibition spaces have low light levels to protect the delicate objects on display. There are lots of tactile tools and resources available to support your visit in the Pick and Mix station. This is just inside the entrance to the museum. ** Information for Learning Disabled visitors: We have an Easy Read guide for the main gallery. This can be found in the Pick and Mix station. There are Makaton signs next to some of our star objects. These can help you to communicate about what is on display. ** Quieter times to visit and relaxed openings Generally, the site is quieter during weekdays and school opening hours. It can be louder at weekends, the late afternoons and in the school holidays. We have weekly Relaxed Opening sessions every Tuesday afternoon, 2pm to 4pm. You can contact us in advance to find out when might be the best time for you to visit. ** Maps: You can download floor plans, sensory maps and visual stories from our website: www.wakefield.gov.uk/museums-and-castles/pontefract-museum/access-at-pontefract-museum/

Accessibility Guide

Accessibility Guide Link: https://www.wakefield.gov.uk/museums-and-castles/pontefract-museum/access-at-pontefract-museum

Access Statement

Access Statement Link: https://www.wakefield.gov.uk/museums-and-castles/pontefract-museum/access-at-pontefract-museum

Awards List

Pontefract Museum is a fully accredited museum service and an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation. We are proud to support the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Scheme. We are signed up to the Kids in Museums manifesto.

Toilets

There is an accessible toilet and baby changing facility inside the museum. You do not need a radar key to access this. There are additional toilets towards the back of the museum. You can reach these by going through the temporary exhibition gallery. Pontefract Museum is a breastfeeding-friendly location. You can breastfeed your baby here. We do not have changing places facilities. The nearest changing places toilet can be found at Junction 32 Outlet Shopping Village, WF10 4FR, 2.5 miles away.

Staff

Our staff are happy to help you with anything you might need. Our staff wear a black uniform. There will always be a member of staff inside the museum when it is open. Most staff have attended Makaton Awareness training, Visual Impairment training, Sighted Guided training and Autism Awareness training. Volunteers are sometimes in the building and can also help. They wear a green uniform.