5 October, 2020
Heart of the Nation: Migration and the Making of the NHS
A new digital exhibition by the Migration Museum
Explore the exhibition at: heartofthenation.migrationmuseum.org
We are thrilled to launch our new digital exhibition Heart of the Nation: Migration and the Making of the NHS.
Heart of the Nation shines a light on the stories and experiences of people who have come to Britain to work in the National Health Service (NHS) over the past 72 years.
The NHS is close to all of our hearts – now more than ever. From the very beginning, people have come to Britain from all over the world to make this grand vision for a better society a reality. The NHS would not have become the beloved institution it is today without its international workers. But their crucial role has largely been ignored.
Heart of the Nation: Migration and the Making of the NHS puts this vital story at centre stage through dozens of oral histories from NHS workers from all over the world, archival materials, as well as art, animations and data visualisations. Now, more than ever, it’s a story that needs to be told.
This is the story of the NHS. This is the story of Britain.
We’ve been hard at work over the past few months gathering stories, artworks, archival materials and contributions and working with our fabulous developers Eight Arms on this exhibition. We hope that it delivers a similar interactive, story-led, immersive feel that you have come to expect from our physical exhibitions – we can’t wait for you to experience it!
Let us know what you think – and, if you like it, please help us to spread the word about Heart of the Nation by sharing the link and promoting via your networks and on social media using the hashtag #HeartoftheNation.
3 November, 2020
The Migration Museum will be closed to the public for at least four weeks from Thursday 5 November 2020, in line with the new government regulations requiring all entertainment venues, including museums, to close until at least 2 December in response to the rapid rise in the number of Coronavirus (Covid-19) cases across London and the rest of the UK.
Having only recently reopened and launched our new exhibition, Departures, we are closing our doors again with a heavy heart. We were so excited to welcome you back and to share our new exhibition with you – and we hope to be able to reopen again safely soon, in line with government and public health regulations and guidance.
Although our museum will remain closed until further notice, there are still plenty of ways you can engage with us via our digital exhibition Heart of the Nation: Migration and the Making of the NHS, our website and on social media. We will be announcing more details about upcoming digital and social media content and activities soon, as well as online education resources and workshops, so sign up to our mailing list and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to be the first to know.
In the meantime, we know that these are difficult and concerning times for everyone. Let’s all take care, stay safe and look after each other.
All the best,
The Migration Museum team
4 May, 2021
The Migration Museum has created a shop story trail for Newham Heritage Month, celebrating the stories of local shopkeepers and business owners who have found new ways to keep the community running throughout the pandemic.
Throughout its history many people have settled in Newham and shaped the area. From booksellers to dressmakers, shopkeepers to café owners explore Newham’s outstanding businesses and their migration stories.
On the trail you will hear stories from local business owners Mohammed, John, Vivian and Kate, as they share their stories of Newham, and how they came to run their businesses in the area.
This is a self-guided mini trail, beginning at Newham Bookshop. The walk takes around 30 minutes without stops, but we encourage you to spend time, browse the shops, grab some food, and perhaps share your own migration story too.
If you don’t want to visit all the shops in one day, you can download our leaflet and map and create your own route.
Don’t forget to tag us @MigrationMuseumUK on Instagram, and @MigrationUK on Twitter with your photographs of the walk.
Find out more about Newham Heritage Month
29 September, 2020
The Migration Museum is reopening four days a week from 3 December: Thursdays–Sundays, from 11am–5pm.
Measures we are taking to keep visitors, volunteers and staff safe
We have adapted our museum to meet Covid-secure guidelines to ensure the safety of our visitors, volunteers and staff at all times.
We’ll still be offering you the same warm welcome and space to explore and reflect on themes that go to the heart of urgent conversations around migration, identity, race and belonging. But like so many other aspects of our lives right now, we’ll be doing things a little bit differently:
- We have redesigned our space to ensure that social distancing can be maintained at all times, in compliance with Covid-secure guidelines.
- We have installed multiple hand-sanitiser stations and will be encouraging all visitors to make use of them.
- We will be conducting regular disinfecting and cleaning of all public areas and equipment.
- All staff and volunteers will be wearing masks and, in line with new guidelines, we will be requiring all visitors to wear masks at all times too unless they have an exemption from doing so.
- Advance booking is not required. However, we may need to restrict the number of visitors in our museum and our exhibitions at any time in order to ensure that social distancing can be maintained at all times. This may mean a short wait before being admitted during busy times. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
- All visitors to our exhibitions will be required to leave their details in line with Track and Trace requirements.
- Please adhere to the regulations in line with the Tier 2 restrictions currently in place in London, meaning: please only visit with people in your own household or support bubble, up to a maximum of six visitors in total per group. Please keep socially distanced from visitors from any other household or support bubble throughout the duration of your visit.
- Where possible, please walk or cycle and avoid using public transport when visiting us, especially during peak hours.
- In order to ensure a safe and socially distanced environment for visitors, we regret that we will not be able to accommodate in-person group or education visits for the remainder of the year. We hope to start welcoming group and education visits again in 2021, in line with government and public health guidance. In the meantime, if you would like to enquire about online education workshops, please email info@migrationmuseum.org.
- We have made the difficult decision not to reopen our Room to Breathe exhibition for the time being due to the enclosed layout and the highly interactive nature of this exhibition. We are continuing to explore ways of adapting Room to Breathe to enable us to reopen it in some form soon.
We thank you for your cooperation in following these new requirements to help us to keep each other safe and our museum open.
