Explore the role of play and its purpose in museums. If museums want a better future they must be welcoming, playful, social spaces.

Join interpretation specialist Anna Ravenscroft to explore the power of play as a tool for learning, engagement and inclusion. Together, we’ll consider how creating more playful museums can help us reach wider and more diverse audiences, encourage deeper participation, and create experiences that are memorable long after a visit has ended. Through practical activities and discussion, participants will explore how to move beyond text-led interpretation and embrace more active, social and participatory approaches.

Play is not childish, it is child-like: rooted in curiosity, experimentation, wonder and possibility. Drawing on her experience of creating interpretation with and for young people, Anna argues that the principles of playful interpretation lead to richer experiences for everyone. Expect to challenge yourself to embrace a more playful approach and discover how it can transform the way you create interpretation.

In this lively, hands-on session, Anna will guide you through imaginative exercises that stretch your creative and interpretive muscles. Together, you’ll experiment with playful ways into content, unlocking new routes to meaning-making that go beyond labels and panels. The session will leave you with a renewed sense of energy, confidence, and possibility: ready to bring this spirit of play back into your own workplace.

Drawing on her experience developing world-class interpretation for the Science Museum, Imperial War Museum, and Natural History Museum, Anna will share insights from her own and other projects that use playfulness to promote learning. Her work explores how playful, intergenerational learning transforms the way people interact with content, and how these principles can inspire richer experiences for all audiences.

• Explore how playful experiences change the way all audiences interact with content and create a manifesto for less text and more play, as well as a toolkit for putting that into action at your museum.

• Engage with Practical Exercises: Engage in practice-based exercises that will help solidify your understanding of the role of play and how it can be approached in your own museum.

• Case Studies and Real-World Examples: Gain inspiration and understanding from a variety of case studies showcasing a range of playful approaches to museum interpretation and the lessons learned from them.

• Reflect and Collaborate: Work in small, supportive groups to reflect on your ideas and activities. This conversational and relaxed setting encourages open discussion and peer learning.

• Actionable Next Steps: Leave with a clear ideas to help you approach your own playful approaches to museum interpretation.

Playful Approaches to Museum Interpretation: Life Outside the Text Box
Study Day, 26 January, Central London
Led by Anna Ravenscroft

About the Workshop Leader

Anna Ravenscroft has delivered award-winning interpretation for major galleries at the Imperial War Museums and the Science Museum, and has worked with organisations including the Natural History Museum, National Portrait Gallery and Barts Health NHS Trust Archives. This workshop draws on her work developing the Technicians gallery at the Science Museum and the forthcoming Children’s Gallery at the Natural History Museum, exploring how playful experiences can deepen engagement with collections for audiences of all ages.

Book Tickets

Click ‘Select options’ below to book your place on the study day. Tickets are available on a sliding scale from £137 – £177. Book with colleagues for multiple delegate discounts. Book your ticket online below or email info@museum-id.com if you prefer to be invoiced.

Want to join us for several study days? You can save with our 2027 Study Day Ticket Bundle.

20% of tickets are available at a reduced rate for museum workers who may often be excluded from training and professional development opportunities, including people of colour, LGBTQ+ members of staff, students, freelancers, and those working at small independent museums. Reduced rate tickets are £97 – email info@museum-id.com to check availability and to book a ticket at the reduced rate.

Tickets are non-refundable but may be swapped between colleagues at the same organisation and between different study days (if places are available). If the workshop is postponed, your ticket remains valid for the rescheduled date.