Following a £2.8 million redevelopment, the museum has reopened as a major visitor experience that brings Victorian stories of poverty and survival to life through interactive displays and activities.
The reopening marks the culmination of extensive conservation and restoration work undertaken as part of the Inspiration for a Fairer Future project, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Other supporters include The Wolfson Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation and North Yorkshire County Council.
The new and expanded museum trail tells the stories of past residents of the workhouse. Through hands-on activities, interactive displays and immersive storytelling, groups will discover what life was like inside one of Britain’s most complete surviving Victorian workhouses.
A key focus of the redevelopment was the complete and sensitive restoration work of the Residents’ Block, the largest building on the site and the place where paupers ate, slept and worked. Used for a variety of different things over the years since, including as a care home and council offices, the building had fallen into disrepair when Ripon Museums acquired it in 2017. As part of the extensive refurbishments, original historic features have been restored.
“…a powerful, immersive experience where visitors can step into the shoes of real people who lived through extraordinary hardship.”
Alexa Vernon, director of Ripon Museums Trust
Revamped rooms include the Old Men’s Day Room, Kitchen and Dining Hall, and the original workhouse cellar has been opened up for the first time.
Dr Laura Allan, curator at Ripon Museums Trust, said: “The cellar is particularly exciting as it’s the only part of that building that had been untouched since it was turned into council offices.
“It has the massive original meat block table where the workhouse pigs would be butchered, trough and sink. It’s like glimpsing behind the curtain, seeing how it truly was.”
‘Could you survive the workhouse?’
The museum has been designed to be a thought-provoking and engaging experience. Visitors are asked: ‘Could you survive the workhouse?’ as they move through the museum and take part in activities such spending time in a noisy vagrants’ cell, sweeping the yard, picking oakum from old ropes, and other jobs that would have been carried out by paupers and children every day.
Young visitors can search for hidden mice in the kitchen, use traditional weighing scales to portion out meagre meals, and spin an interactive wheel in the Guardians’ Room to see what their life in the workhouse might have involved. Families can also dress in replica workhouse uniforms for a photo.
Alexa Vernon, director of Ripon Museums Trust, said: “We’ve transformed the workhouse into a powerful, immersive experience where visitors can step into the shoes of real people who lived through extraordinary hardship. Their stories challenge us to think about fairness, dignity and opportunity, both in Victorian Britain and today.
“This project is about much more than restoring a historic building. It is about preserving important heritage, creating opportunities for communities and young people to engage with history, and inspiring visitors to reflect on how we can build a fairer future.
“We want people to leave feeling not only informed, but also more compassionate, thoughtful and connected to the stories of those who came before us.”
The museum now features new spaces for creativity and community participation, including the Discover Space, where visitors can explore connections between past and present through exhibitions, conversations and creative activities.
Group visits to Ripon Museums
The Workhouse Museum is part of Ripon Museums Trust’s trio of museums, all located within walking distance of each other and open daily from mid-February to late November.
Groups can continue their journey through the systems of poverty, crime and punishment in Victorian Yorkshire at the Prison & Police Museum and Courthouse Museum. In the Courthouse, visitors can stand in the real courtroom while the Prison & Police Museum allows them to step inside original prison cells.
Guided tours of one, two or all three museums are available to groups of ten or more and the price includes entry to the museums.
A tour of the Workhouse and Prison & Police Museums include object handling while the Courthouse Museum tour involves a mock trial with scripts and costumes. Bespoke activities are available, including rag-rugging at the Workhouse Museum.
Find more information about group visits to Ripon Museums here: riponmuseums.co.uk/visit/group_visits.
