Craven Museum

About the museum

Craven Museum opened in 1928 in Skipton Library and tells the story of the Craven area from prehistory to the Victorian era. Its collection of about 60,000 objects covers millions of years of local history, with prehistoric and Roman finds, the limestone caves of Craven and everyday life in Victorian Skipton. The Friends of Craven Museum was set up in 1969.

The museum is now housed in Skipton Town Hall, a building put up in 1862 as a reading room and designed by Mr Jee of Liverpool. It became the Town Hall in 1895, when it was bought by Skipton Urban District Council, and a 1972 annexe housed the museum. A £4.7 million restoration between 2019 and 2021 restored the Concert Hall and redesigned the museum, and the site is now run by North Yorkshire Council.

Highlights include a First Folio of Shakespeare’s plays printed in 1623 and furniture by Robert Thompson, the “Mouseman”. An exhibition gallery on the first floor shows rotating displays, and the Community Case on the ground floor hosts displays by local groups that change every three months. The museum won the 2023 Kids in Museums Family Friendly Museum award.

Highlights

• Shakespeare First Folio printed in 1623
• Furniture by Robert Thompson, the “Mouseman”
• Prehistoric and Roman finds from Craven
• Displays on the limestone caves of Craven
• Life in Skipton in the Victorian era
• Free family trails and sensory bags

Permanent exhibition

• Craven Museum collection – Objects from prehistoric and Roman times, the Craven caves and Victorian Skipton, with the 1623 Shakespeare First Folio and Mouseman furniture.

Founded

1928

Operated by

North Yorkshire Council

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Entry is free to the museum, exhibition gallery, visitor centre and shop.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The side entrance has a ramp with power-assisted doors and the rear stage door is level; the front entrance has five steps. Lifts serve the first floor. There are two accessible toilets and a Changing Places toilet on the ground floor, and induction loops in the visitor centre and concert hall. All areas are accessible with a pushchair. Relaxed museum sessions run on the first Monday of each month, with quiet spaces and ear defenders, and free sensory bags can be borrowed. Blue Badge holders pay for parking on arrival and receive an extra hour.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Stroller-friendly
• Baby changing facilities

The museum is a free, family-friendly museum with interactive elements, free trail sheets for different ages (including an activity trail for ages 7 and over and a movement trail for ages 2 and over) and free craft sessions in school holidays. Baby changing is in the women’s toilets in the main foyer and in the all-gender toilets by the stage door. The venue is breastfeeding friendly.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Restaurant: not available
• Museum shop

The shop sells items inspired by the collection, local crafts, gifts and pocket-money toys. There is no café listed; the Hub Bar opens one hour before most events and serves drinks and snacks.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events
• Weddings / ceremonies

Bookable spaces in the Town Hall include the Concert Hall (weddings, performances, conferences), the Education Room, the Hub and the Roebuck Rooms, with a kitchen for catering. Not part of the museum itself.

Plan your visit