Museum of Oxford

Om museet

The Museum of Oxford first opened in December 1975 to share the story of the city and its communities through exhibitions and displays. Early items included a Roman kiln and the interior of a 19th-century barge. Free entry was introduced in 1980, and visitor numbers doubled within six months. Oxford City Council took over management from the Oxfordshire County Museums Service at the end of the 1990s, and in the 2000s the museum survived a threat of closure thanks to support from the community and the Oxford Civic Society, many of whose members became early volunteers.

The museum is housed in Oxford Town Hall on St Aldates, a Grade II* listed Victorian building that opened in 1897 and has also been home to a police station, library, court and a wartime hospital. A National Lottery Heritage Fund grant in 2015 paid for a major redevelopment. Construction began in 2018, and a small Micro-Museum in the Town Hall kept the public connected until early 2020. The museum reopened in October 2021 with galleries three times the previous size and a collection about two and a half times larger.

Today two galleries combine objects, video, audio and interactive displays on Oxford's history and its people, from football and fairgrounds to marmalade and Morris Motors. New activity spaces serve community groups, schools and families, and the museum works with local communities to co-curate exhibitions. It celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025.

Højdepunkter

• Two galleries on Oxford's history, from fairgrounds to Morris Motors
• Items belonging to Alice Liddell
• Dig pit and dressing-up counter for families
• Highlights audio tour in several languages and British Sign Language
• Walking tours of the city and tours inside Oxford Town Hall

Permanent udstilling

• Museum of Oxford galleries – Two galleries on the history of Oxford and its people, with collection objects, video, audio and interactive displays.

Grundlagt

1975

Ejer

Oxford City Council

Entrépriser & rabatter

Gratis entré: Free entry days in 2026: Wednesday 28 October, Saturday 14 November and Wednesday 23 December.

Tickets can be booked in advance or bought on the day. Free annual passes giving unlimited entry for one year are available to eligible visitors, for example people who are registered blind or disabled, foster carers, refugees and asylum seekers, people in homeless pathway accommodation, and recipients of certain benefits; passes are registered at the museum with proof of eligibility.

Tilgængelighed

• Kørestolsvenlig
• Elevator
• Handicaptoilet
• Handicapparkering
• Servicehunde tilladt
• Taktile tilbud
• Rundvisninger på tegnsprog
• Letlæste tilbud: ingen oplysninger
• Synstolkning: ingen oplysninger

The main Town Hall entrance has eight steps; a step-free entrance with a ramp and automatic doors is on the left, further north along St Aldates, with an intercom to call staff. A platform lift serves a small level change in the first gallery and another lift goes to the activity spaces in the basement. A wheelchair can be borrowed at the Town Hall reception. Accessible toilets are on the ground floor of the Town Hall and in the museum basement. Large-print labels, an induction loop in the shop, a visual story, a sensory map, a sensory borrow box and sensory backpacks are available. The audio tours include British Sign Language. Guide and assistance animals are welcome. There are three disabled parking spaces on the High Street and Blue Badge bays at Westgate car park, but no drop-off point outside the Town Hall.

Børn og familie

Velegnet til børn og familier

• Familieomvisninger & workshops
• Opgavehæfte, skattejagt eller audioguide for børn
• Interaktive stationer
• Barnevognsvenlig
• Puslerum

Families can follow themed gallery trails and borrow explorer or sensory backpacks (recommended from age 5), dig for objects in the dig pit, dress up at the Capes counter and follow an audio Treasure Tour for ages 5 to 11. Family events run every holiday and half term, and relaxed sessions are offered for some workshops. Baby changing is in the Town Hall ground floor and the museum basement. Prams can be left in the museum at the owner's risk.

Transport & parkering

The museum is inside Oxford Town Hall on St Aldates. There are 10 bike rings on the Town Hall and bike racks on Queens Street near Carfax Tower.

Service & spisesteder

• Café
• Museumsbutik

A café in the Town Hall serves hot and cold drinks, sandwiches, baguettes, cakes and snacks; it is open 09:30 to 16:00 on weekdays and 10:30 to 15:00 on Saturdays. The museum shop at the entrance sells local crafts, books on local history, postcards, toys and souvenirs.

Arrangementer & udlejning

• Lokaler til leje
• Private fester
• Firmaarrangementer

Modern, accessible spaces can be hired for meetings, community gatherings, private events and classes.

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