Venue Description

A world away from a traditional mining museum, Woodhorn is well-known for its fun events programme, including family picnic days, car shows and it even featured on Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. As of July 2017 dogs are also welcomed on-site too. The museum is proud to house the Ashington Group Collection of artworks – commonly known as the ‘Pitmen Painters’. This iconic display showcases what daily life was really like for miners in and around Ashington from the 1930s. It is reputed to be the first collection of amateur art to go on permanent display anywhere in the world. Woodhorn brings to life Northumberland’s proud mining heritage, alongside an ever-changing contemporary arts and event programme – making it a fun and cultural day out Did you know that at its peak, over 2,000 people worked underground at the site? A whopping 600,000 tonnes of coal was mined from the pit each year. Come along and visit the North East’s last remaining coal mining built heritage and check out our winding houses – including the most powerful winding engine in the region and the ventilation fan which took a direct hit, but survived the German bombing of 1941. Our modern Cutter Building showcases our impressive banner collection, Coal Town exhibition and, of course, our iconic Ashington Group Collection. The mixture of the historic and the modern is something you can expect from all Museums Northumberland sites. Be sure to take a look at the wall of the Cutter Building which features a moving sculpture made up of 98 birds, fashioned from moulded miners’ gloves – each of which sadly represent a life lost at Woodhorn Colliery throughout its history. With so much to see and do at Woodhorn Museum, it’s a hands-on experience to remember Membership is required for entry onto the museum site. Membership Prices for Woodhorn Museum: Adult: £9.50 Concession (People over 60 and student) £8.50 Children under 18 are admitted free at all Museums Northumberland venues. *Membership is valid for 12 months and includes unlimited return visits but please be aware that parking charges still apply on FREE community event days at Woodhorn Museum including the Northumberland Miners’ Picnic.

Accessibility

6 of the original colliery buildings open to the public are accessible at ground level or have access ramps to higher levels. 'The Cutter' main museum and archive building is set out over 2 floors but is built into the hillside allowing ground level access to both floors. There is a long access ramp between the upper and lower ground floors hung with the iconic Miner's banners. The shop and cafe located in the Cutter are also fully accessible on ground level.

Accessibility Guide

Accessibility Guide Link: https://museumsnorthumberland.org.uk/about-us/accessibility/

Access Statement

Access Statement Link: https://museumsnorthumberland.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Woodhorn-Access-Guide-2018-update.pdf

Awards List

Green Tourism Gold Award The Journal Culture Awards 2013: North East Museum Winner International Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice: Bronze award WOW Award Johnston Press: Best Event Shortlisted and Shortlisted Best Venue for Children National Museums and Heritage Awards: Highly Commended for Best Project on a Limited Budget and Finalist Best Marketing Campaign International PocketMedia® Awards 2014: Most Creative Design winner and Overall Judges’ Choice Award The Journal Culture Awards 2014: North East Museum of the Year and Best Event Northumberland Living North Awards 2015: North East Attraction of the Year Evening Chronicle People’s Choice Awards: Best Family Attraction Award Runner Up and Best Event Runner Up The Journal Culture Awards 2015: Museum of the Year Finalist, Best Event Northumberland Winner and Best Event North East Overall Winner

Toilets

Public toilets are located at the tourist information point in the car park, the Workshop Galleries and on both ground and upper ground floors of the Cutter Building. All toilets have level access. There are vertical rails either side of both basin and toilet. There is a horizontal rail on the side wall adjacent to the toilet. There are lever taps on the sinks.

Staff

All of our staff receive regular training that includes disability awareness training. We are here to help you make the most of your visit to Woodhorn, so please do contact us in advance of your visit if you require any specific assistance or information.

Assistance dog facilities

Assistance dog exercise facilities

Assistance dogs are welcome at Woodhorn Museum. Family pets may also accompany visitors everywhere except inside the main building and the café.

Other assistance dog facilities

We have a dog bowl available for water outside the administration building adjacent to the car park and also outside the Cafe on the main site.