To celebrate International Museum Day on Saturday 18 May, The Journal visited the award-winning centre of local history, situated on our doorstep in the heart of Radstock.

Radstock Museum displays life during the Victorian era, highlighting the mining heritage of Radstock and the surrounding areas. The building itself provides a lesson on bygone days - it was formerly home to the once-thriving Radstock Market Hall. In 1999, with funding support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and local councils, work on the museum started in the Grade II listed building.

Fast forward to now, and the wonderful team of volunteers, supported by manager Nick Turner, present a range of permanent displays and timed exhibitions as well as extra activities for children related to everything on show at the museum.

Lucy Tudor works as part of the education team. She explained that they host regular school visits, providing an immersive Victorian experience featuring visits to the Co-Op and school classroom. Children visit a miner’s cottage to meet the miner’s wife who would be running the home, before journeying to the coalmine - complete with lifelike sounds - to see what working life was like when the industry boomed.

Lucy said: “We encourage the children to notice the differences between life then and now rather than just telling them what people went through.

“It’s important that we educate them about history, it’s a joy that we get to do it in a fun way”.

For the wider community, Radstock Museum hosts group café sessions, encouraging social interaction and improving well-being for members of the community. There are three ‘Community Café’ sessions: Local History Club; Memory Club, for people with dementia and memory loss; and a Wellbeing Café for carers.

Helen Vella is the community manager at Radstock Museum. She runs the café sessions and told us the impact they have on attendees: “People from all walks of life come here. Community Cafés bring people together who wouldn’t necessarily meet organically, and everyone gets on so well. One lady who attends told me that she hadn’t left the house for years before coming here - it really is life-changing for some”.

Manager Nick Turner explains that his dynamic role can involve anything from making teas to artefact control.

One of his main duties, he says, is keeping volunteers happy: “I make sure that volunteers can come in and do the roles that they want to do so that the museum runs smoothly, coinciding with different schedules”.

At the moment, Nick is turning his focus to the museum’s 25th anniversary which falls on July 10. Having lived in the Radstock area nearly all his life and with local family history tracing back to 1690, Nick is excited to be putting together a summer exhibition of memories from the museum since its move to Radstock Market Hall.

If anyone has anything to share, please email [email protected].

Radstock Museum provides an entertaining, educational experience for all. Entry tickets cost £7 for adults, £3 for children aged 6 - 15 and grants access for the whole year.