Maidenhead Heritage Centre
Volunteer-run local museum in a former pub, covering Maidenhead's history and the women pilots of the Air Transport Auxiliary, with a Spitfire simulator.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
Maidenhead Heritage Centre was founded in April 1993 by the Maidenhead Civic Society and the Maidenhead Archaeological and Historical Society, and it became an independent charity in 1995. The museum worked from six other premises before moving to its present home at 18 Park Street, opposite the Town Hall. The building had been a pub, the Cricketers Arms, until 2006, and the centre opened to the public there in summer 2008.
The museum is accredited and, apart from two part-time paid staff, is run entirely by volunteers. Its ground-floor exhibition, the Story of Maidenhead, follows the town from before the Romans to the present day. It includes a Roman skeleton found near Bray, the town seal and the medieval bridge over the Thames that helped the town to grow, as well as the arrival of the Great Western Railway and Maidenhead's Victorian boom.
Upstairs, the permanent exhibition Grandma Flew Spitfires is devoted to the Air Transport Auxiliary, the civilian pilots who delivered aircraft from factories to front-line squadrons during the Second World War; the organisation was headquartered at White Waltham airfield near Maidenhead. The gallery shows uniforms, flying equipment, logbooks and photographs, and a research archive supports it. A Spitfire flight simulator and a changing programme of temporary exhibitions complete the visit.
Highlights
- Story of Maidenhead exhibition from the Stone Age to today
- Grandma Flew Spitfires, a gallery on the Air Transport Auxiliary
- Roman skeleton found near Bray
- Spitfire flight simulator with volunteer instructors
- Dressing up and bridge-building challenges for children
Permanent exhibitions
- Story of Maidenhead – Ground-floor exhibition on the town's history from the Stone Age to the present, with a Roman skeleton, the town seal and the story of the Thames bridge and the railway.
- Grandma Flew Spitfires – Upstairs gallery on the Air Transport Auxiliary, showing uniforms, flying equipment, logbooks, photographs and recorded interviews with its pilots.
- Spitfire Simulator Experience – A flight simulator with replica controls and a wide-screen view, where volunteers instruct visitors on flights to destinations such as London or Paris.
- Founded
- 1993
- Operated by
- The Centre for Maidenhead Heritage (charitable incorporated organisation)
Admission & discounts
| Adults | £4 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | £3Concessions (seniors, disabled people, students, veterans, groups of more than 10) |
| Children & teens | £3free up to age 10 · Children aged 11 to 16; children aged 10 and under are free. |
| Seniors | £3Aged 65 and over. |
| Visitors with disabilities | £3 |
| Students & apprentices | £3 |
| Groups (11+ people) | £3 per personConcession rate for groups of more than 10 people. |
| Spitfire simulator, 30-minute flight | £35Includes exhibition admission for the pilot and spectators (up to four people on a one-off visit). |
| Spitfire simulator, 60-minute flight | £60Includes exhibition admission for the pilot and spectators (up to four people on a one-off visit). |
Adult admission is for ages 16 to 65. Members of the Heritage Centre enter free. Admission covers the ground-floor exhibitions, the Air Transport Auxiliary exhibition and archive upstairs, temporary exhibitions in the Sammes Gallery, the reference library and the gift shop. Free admission for residents of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead was offered until the end of August 2026.
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 ground floor is friendly to wheelchair users and has an accessible toilet; the upstairs gallery is reached by lift. Staff greet visitors and can guide them, seating is available while waiting, and documents can be offered at desk height or on a clipboard. Visitors are asked to give notice of specific needs so the centre can prepare.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 10 |
|---|
- Hands-on stations
Children can dress up as a Roman gladiator, try bridge-building challenges, explore a toy box, meet the resident Roman skeleton called Julius and watch old photographs and videos of Maidenhead on a computer. Children aged 10 and under enter free.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Maidenhead station · 7-min walk
Maidenhead station is about a 7-minute walk away; buses stop at various points in the town centre.
By car
No on-site parking at the museum.
The centre has no car park of its own. Grove Road car park (pay and display) is immediately next to the museum, West Street car park is about an 8-minute walk and Hines Meadow car park (at Sainsbury's, St Cloud Way) about 8 minutes on foot.
The centre is about 5 minutes from M4 junctions 8/9 via the A308 and 15 to 20 minutes' drive from Windsor. It stands opposite the Town Hall.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Café: not available
- Museum shop
There is no cafe in the museum; coffee shops, pubs and restaurants are about 5 minutes away in the town centre. The gift shop is open to visitors.
Events & venue rental
The centre offers speakers for clubs and groups; no venue hire is mentioned.
Plan your visit
| School programs | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Schools can book workshops for Key Stages 1 and 2, secondary schools and homework help. The Spitfire simulator is for pilots aged 8 and over and is booked by phone or email; flights can be shared between several pilots. |
