Wilderspin National School

About the museum

The building on Queen Street was put up in the mid-1840s as a model school for infants. It was designed together with Samuel Wilderspin, a well-known pioneer of infant education who came to Barton-upon-Humber to run it and who taught there with his family until he retired in 1848. The school kept working as a school for well over a century, until the pupils moved to a modern building in 1978.

After that the building was neglected, and by the mid-2000s it was close to dereliction. A local charity, the Queen Street School Preservation Trust, saved it. The building was restored in 2007 and 2008, and the museum has been run by the trust since about 2009. The trust received the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service in 2018 for rescuing and restoring the school and for its museum and education work.

Today the museum is an independent, accredited charity museum. Visitors can see the Victorian classroom with objects they are invited to handle, the interactive Wilderspin Story exhibition, and the playground garden that Wilderspin designed as part of his teaching ideas. There is also the Joseph Wright Hall, which is used for events and hire. Schools and groups can book Victorian-style lessons throughout the year.

Highlights

• Victorian classroom with hands-on objects
• The Wilderspin Story, an interactive exhibition about the founder of infant schooling
• Playground garden based on Wilderspin’s 1845 design
• Victorian and wartime school days for school groups
• Free guided tours one Sunday a month (booking needed)

Permanent exhibitions

• The Victorian Classroom – A school room in the style of the Victorian period, with objects that visitors can handle.
• The Wilderspin Story – An interactive exhibition about Samuel Wilderspin and the schools he founded.
• Playground Garden – The playground that Wilderspin designed in 1845 as part of the infant school, now a garden with activities.

Founded

2009

Operated by

Queen Street School Preservation Trust

Admission & discounts

The £5 adult ticket is an annual ticket, so it allows repeat visits for a year. Free guided tours can be booked one Sunday a month at 11am and 1.30pm. Special events such as quiz nights and the pantomime are charged separately.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• 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 museum says it is fully accessible by wheelchair, with a signed alternative route around the steps into the cloakroom and from the 1845 schoolroom to the playground. Motorised wheelchairs can be used if visitors phone ahead so the route can be kept clear. One wheelchair can be borrowed. There are accessible toilets in each building and a lift in the Joseph Wright Hall to the first-floor auditorium. Allocated parking spaces are available for visitors with disabilities.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations

The Victorian classroom has objects visitors can handle. The museum runs holiday and seasonal children’s events, for example a Humber Stories children’s clothes event and a pantomime.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on Queen Street in Barton-upon-Humber, just off the main road through the town centre; the website gives driving directions from all four directions.

Amenities & dining

A self-service refreshments bar can be used after the Reminiscence Classroom; the former Old School Canteen has closed. Light refreshments are included in some organised group tours.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent

The museum offers venue hire; the Joseph Wright Hall has a first-floor auditorium. Details are on the museum website.

Plan your visit