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Episode 6: Museum and Cultural Memberships You Need to Consider
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MUSEUM MEMBERSHIPS
Episode 6: Museum and Cultural Memberships You Need to Consider
In this episode Vyki and Catherine share their favourite types of cultural memberships for great value for money and additional benefits in London and beyond. Find out how to get instant access to the sold-out Chanel exhibition at the V&A and other perks of the National Museums membership schemes. Discover historic houses, castles and coastlines with the National Trust and the nation’s gems with English Heritage. Get discounted and free entry to galleries across the country with the National Art Pass from Art Fund. Go local with places like Strawberry Hill House. Check out what you can get via work and find out why Catherine can join CSSC. And see whether a ticket already in your wallet can get you free re-entry.
Mentioned in this Episode:
● Natural History Museum membership
● Historic Scotland membership
● Historic Houses Association membership
● National Art Pass (Art Fund pass)
● Strawberry Hill House membership
● CSSC
● National Maritime Museum Cornwall
● Buckingham Palace and all Royal Collection Trust properties
● London Transport Museum annual pass
● The Postal Museum annual ticket
Podcast
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Transcript
Introduction to Museums and Exhibitions
00:00:04
Speaker
Welcome to the Exhibitionist Podcast. I'm Vicky from Museum Mum. And I'm Catherine from Cultural Wednesday. Together we are co-host on this friendly insider's guide to the best exhibitions, museums and historic places to visit, in London and beyond. Between us we visit hundreds of cultural places a year. We're here to share what we've seen so you know what's worth the travel. Get ready to fuel your curiosity and wanderlust with the Exhibitionist.
Why Consider Museum Memberships?
00:00:30
Speaker
This week, museum memberships. First Vicky, how are you? Yeah, I'm really good, actually. Yeah, it's all been good. I got to finally... Well, I said finally, it's only been a few weeks. I got to see the Chanel at the V&A last week. Oh, lucky you. How did you get into there? That all the tickets are sold.
00:00:49
Speaker
This is it. I booked it quite some time ago. I had to scroll very far through my inbox to find it. And before, obviously, it's completely sold out now. And I saw people trying to argue their way in on the door or so. But I was really, really impressed with it, especially the way that they dealt with the war and her relationship.
00:01:13
Speaker
with the sort of political situation at the time, I thought they didn't shy away from it and actually brought out evidence and tried to look at it in different lights, as well as having obviously lots of beautiful clothing. Yeah, so many beautiful frocks. And so that is indeed why we're talking about museum membership this week, because
00:01:33
Speaker
The only way that if you didn't think or book ahead, the only way that you can actually get to go and see the exhibition now is by buying V&A membership.
00:01:44
Speaker
Yeah, that's right, completely sold out. And so we thought we'd do a special episode where we talk about all the benefits, all the different types of membership there are out there and what the benefits are. And so you can start to think about which ones might work for you.
Choosing the Right National Museum Membership
00:01:57
Speaker
Maybe we should just kick off with the National Museums like the V&A and talk about their membership. I think you're a member, aren't you, Catherine? I am a member of the V&A. Yes, I use its members room, often love its members room. And my
00:02:13
Speaker
10% discount in the shop. I think that I save my membership by using my 10% discount in the shop, to be honest. That's well used. So all of the national museums like the DNA run membership schemes. And so some of the benefits which are, like you said, the members room, you get this exclusive space. I love a members room.
00:02:34
Speaker
Also things free entry to their paid exhibitions and also you don't have to book anymore especially post pandemic now you normally just flash your membership card at the door which is nice if you're in the area or if you just wanted to pop back to see one or two pieces of artwork that you loved.
00:02:49
Speaker
Yes, and also that you get invitation to special members' previews. At the V&A, that's all included, but there are some memberships when that's an add-on. You need to be quite careful. Some of them really mount up. You look at the basic price and think, oh, that doesn't sound too much. By the time you've added on all the different sites and having member previews and
00:03:13
Speaker
all sorts of things that can be really quite expensive. That's it and I think when you're looking at memberships it's really thinking about where are you going to visit and also where do you want to support because it's not just always about what you get but also where is your money going and that sort of thing. You often get a glossy magazine and you also get there are usually special member events talks and visits
00:03:37
Speaker
You usually have to pay extra for that and again they can be pricey but they're always interesting. You've got the V&A.
00:03:48
Speaker
Which you've had for a number of years I believe. I do and I have a sole membership and then I have a plus one so that means that I can take either Mr C W or a friend with me if I want to go or indeed access to the members room and so I pay £112 for me and a plus one every year.
00:04:09
Speaker
Yeah. And when you think about some of these exhibitions are sort of £25, £30 now. So if you're going to visit a couple of exhibitions a year, especially the bigger places, Tate and the V&A, they have several exhibitions a year. So if you're going to visit three or four of those, then it's paid for itself.
00:04:26
Speaker
I actually have the Natural History Museum membership, which is a bit different. They do have paid for exhibitions, but they're not blockbusters in the same way. But what I like about it is the members room. They have a really nice quiet space because it's quite hectic at Natural History Museum. If you go there, I think it's the UK's most popular museum.
00:04:48
Speaker
and so you can go and see things and then retreat to an area and it's got lots of games and books and then a little dining space as well which the food's really nice but also you can skip the queue so when you get there you can just because you have to book entry now from the Natural History Museum unless you're a member so then you can just go straight to the front of queue and that that just it just takes the pressure off so somewhere you like and you enjoy it's not necessarily I'm saving excellent exhibitions it's just it just makes the whole day a lot nicer. Yeah no absolutely and you can dig
00:05:18
Speaker
in and out. We used to use, we had historic royal palaces membership when the children were small and it meant that you could just walk into the Tower of London skipping the queues and you didn't have to spend all day because you spent a small fortune. You could just spend a couple of hours and then go away again.
00:05:40
Speaker
I think that's it. I think with my audience, I always say just go for one thing. Go for half an hour. Go for 45 minutes, especially with kids. But to be honest, even with adults, our attention spans are limited. If you've paid, I don't know, £50 or something for family to get in somewhere, you're going to be like, look at everything, see everything. But if you're just popping in and you know you can go back at any time and it's not going to cost you any extra, it just makes the whole day more relaxed and more enjoyable, I find.
00:06:05
Speaker
So in terms of families, it's quite interesting how much variance there is in these national schemes for families and which ones have family children included or not. So for example, I know with the V&A you get up to four children, eight includes six children. So if you have a large family, you can take more from no extra than the individual cost. But other ones, for example, the Natural History Museum, which is more of a family attraction, you actually pay extra then to add children to
Exploring National Trust and English Heritage Benefits
00:06:33
Speaker
your membership. So
00:06:34
Speaker
If you have got family, do look carefully at what is included and if there are any hidden extras or things that you didn't anticipate.
00:06:43
Speaker
OK, so there are big individual museums, but then there are also national organisations that get you entry into lots and lots of different places, like National Trust, English Heritage, Historic Scotland, Cadoo and Historic Houses Association. Do you belong to any of those or indeed all of them, Vicki?
00:07:09
Speaker
Not all yet. I'd need a few more years off to work my way through them but I have been a National Trust member for years and it's very well used and very handy and you're also a National Trust member I believe. I am. I think one of the big regrets of my life is that when I was 18 I did not buy or ask an indulgent grandparent to buy me life membership because it would have saved me a small fortune over the years.
00:07:38
Speaker
I have heard of people who, when a child is born, the grandparent buys them this life membership, which is, like you said, a very indulgent present, but also very thoughtful as well, should you have spare cash for it. But no, I've got the family membership, and it's great because it's hundreds of places. It's a member's organization.
00:08:00
Speaker
It's, they've taken ownership and care for properties, gardens and land all across the UK. And as a member, you get to visit for free. And with the family membership, I can, I can bring my partner and also the children. But also on top of that, you actually have some say in the organisation and how it's run as well.
00:08:20
Speaker
So they have their annual general meeting. And it's very actually political, especially at the moment, the heritage sector, there's a lot of politics behind there. And so being able to say, no, this is the sort of organization I want to belong to, and this is how I think heritage should move towards and what it should care for and what should prioritize, I think is actually really important. Yes, that reminds me, my membership, the voting pack is sitting there waiting for me to vote. I'll do that immediately after we finish this, I promise.
00:08:51
Speaker
Back to visits, what do you like most about National Trust?
00:08:54
Speaker
I like the free parking, that's the. I like the fact that they are very different places. I like the fact that you can go to a remote wild piece of land that is being cared for and walk and enjoy it. I like the fact that there are amazingly huge stately homes with the many stories that they tell and also smaller places. So I think there's a huge variety
00:09:23
Speaker
Yeah, and it's growing. They're still acquiring new places. And yeah, and they do a lot for the environment as well. So there's a lot to do with rewilding and moving towards net carbon zero. So it's a very forward thinking organization and it is about caring for things for future generations. So I'm a huge fan of the National Trust. Yes, I did. I used to volunteer at my local property. I used to lead walks through the Polston Lacey estate.
00:09:52
Speaker
Wow. Well, we know who to go to for tips on walks and polls. We actually did our episode on motorway stop-offs. We talked about quite a few national trusts, and that's again because if you're a member, it's free. Instead of stopping in some instantly forgettable service station for a sake sandwich, you can head to a national trust along the route and stretch your legs and pop to the cafe. Which I think we both do often.
00:10:18
Speaker
So in terms of national trust, what's the current rates on that? That is it's £84 for a person, a single person. And then if you want to add children or indeed grandchildren, it's £7 to take your family, children with you.
00:10:38
Speaker
That's right, and that's £7 for the year, so it's only a small amount extra, and it's up to six kids go free with a paying member, so that's great. And also what we've discovered in the research, we've just confirmed, so your National Trust membership can be used in 14 associated heritage organisations worldwide, including Scotland, so if you go to Scotland, you can use it there. But also, maybe we need a trip, Catherine, to Italy, Bahamas and Canada, so.
00:11:03
Speaker
I could quite fancy Canada. Should we take a train across Canada, stopping off at heritage places? I think that sounds good. Flashing out National Trust cards. I can think of worse things to do in my life. Yeah, absolutely. And so, English heritage, I always think of ruins and castles, but it's a lot more than that, isn't it? It's quite complicated. And I think, again, that's quite interesting because it comes from a different place. The National Trust was set up by members, whereas English heritage, a lot of the properties used to be owned by the government.
00:11:32
Speaker
and it actually used to be part of the government and now it's kind of like an arms-length member's sort of umbrella organization. So you don't have voting rights in the same way, you don't have a say, but what you do get is access to nationally important monuments. 400 places, yes. That's right. And they are incredibly varied.
00:11:57
Speaker
I'm just trying to think which ones I've been to. Well, in London there's Elton Palace. And that's beautiful because you've got, it goes from Tudor Palace, this Art Deco masterpiece. It's quite extraordinary. No, it's absolutely incredible. I went to Walmer Castle for my birthday for the first time. Very nice. I've never been there. I shall add it to my list.
00:12:20
Speaker
Yeah, it's got a Queen Mum connection and you can see a pair, apparently Duke of Wellington died there, and you can see a pair of his wellies. Excellent. But back to the case in point. Again, it's, sorry, go for it. Also, free parking as well, if you're an English heritage member, free parking at all the sites.
00:12:42
Speaker
Yeah. And that's, again, they run regular events on half terms. And it's across the country. And if you're an English heritage member, you can also then use it in the other nations. So you can use it in Wales and in Scotland as well. And the Isle of Man, as we've discovered.
00:13:04
Speaker
We have, we've learned a lot on this. But it's again, so it's where are you going to go? What are you going to use? And it's not that one is better, they're just different and they have different places.
Historic Houses and Art Passes: Unique Memberships
00:13:16
Speaker
So if you've got a few properties you particularly love, you know, that might sway which one you get, or maybe you've got enough money, you can do both.
00:13:23
Speaker
For the historic houses that are still owned and lived in by the people who have owned and lived in them for centuries, there is the Historic Houses Association and that will get you into places like Hocum Hall and Anwick Castle. And that
00:13:43
Speaker
is they're all independent, aren't they? So this again is very different. They've kind of clubbed together and the money then is divided between the properties based on how many people visit them. And it's very varied. Yeah, they're hugely varied and they are their homes. So I think it's always really interesting to see places, museums that people live in.
00:14:09
Speaker
Definitely. And so we went to Laufer Castle, which was a historic houses association place this summer, which apparently has, it claims to be England's largest playground. It was very big for sure. And I lost the kids in it for many hours. So that was great. And that was included with the historic houses association pass.
00:14:32
Speaker
So that is £65 for an adult and it's another £30 for every child that you add. Age three to 16. That's my bugbear. When children stop at 16, they still live with you. You're still going on holiday with you. They don't massively start earning because they're still at school at 18. Children are children until they're 18.
00:14:56
Speaker
Well, this is it, especially with compulsory education now. They, you know, essentially is an increased period. They're not earning, but eating more and then you're expected to pay more to take them out with you as well. Yes. Did we mention the English Heritage price? I can't remember if we did. English Heritage is, it's £69 for a single person and that includes up to six children.
00:15:20
Speaker
So we've talked about nationals, we've talked about the kind of national heritage organisations. Maybe we should talk about some of the local gems that you can also join. Yes, or I was going to pop in the Art Fun Card, which is sort of a quasi thing.
00:15:38
Speaker
Well, so the Art Fund, National Art Past, use its full name, which is run by the Art Fund, again, is slightly different still. Like you said, it's got a national remit and it's a charity which supports the art sector, gives a lot of funding to the sector. And then by joining, you're actually donating to them and then this money can be spread between these organisations. Yes, they use it basically to buy objects or to support places.
00:16:07
Speaker
Yeah, that go into different museums. And that's right. Sometimes when you go around, you'll see a special little logo, say this was purchased by the by the Art Fund or using funds in the Art Fund. But also they do a lot of training. I work in the sector. So there's a lot of schemes which help develop professionally people who work in the arts as well. So it's a really it's a good thing. All of these places are good things.
00:16:29
Speaker
But as a member, you get a really nice mix of national organisations. You get half price to their exhibitions. So all of the big places you might go, like Tate and British Museum and Royal Academy. All of those you'll get 50% off. But then it also gives you free entry to a lot of the smaller places as well. 250 places are free.
00:16:55
Speaker
I know, and it's always, I'm always delighted when I find one actually. My favourite was, I think the first one that we used with our card many years ago was the Royal Pavilion at Brighton.
00:17:08
Speaker
which is stunning and well worth visiting. This summer we were in the Lake District and we went to Brantwood, which is John Ruskin's house, and they were doing a day where it was all children's activities and it was free because it was included with entry and entry was free for our fund holders.
00:17:26
Speaker
Excellent. And that was just such a special day. So and it's one of those things, it's not just the entrance is either discounted or free. There's also a lot of discounts and shops and things. Yes, you need to check and also a really good magazine quarterly, I think it is that comes that is just sort of goes, it's the
00:17:49
Speaker
big exhibitions that are opening not only in London, but across the country and sort of deep dive into it and what the objects which the art fund have funded as well, which is always absolutely fascinating.
00:18:03
Speaker
I always have a pen near me on my phone and I always get more ideas for things to visit after I've read it because it really does give you an overview of everything that's happening in the art sector. I really, really enjoy reading that. So definitely do check what's around because I discovered after a few years that my local museum, the William Morris Gallery,
00:18:23
Speaker
I actually get a discount in the cafe so it's free and the exhibitions are free so I've never shown my card there and then I found out I could have been getting money with my lattes and my sandwiches so I now show that so now often I'll go somewhere and I'll just ask randomly if they do you take the art you know the national art pass and I'm always surprised and quite pleased and somebody says yes we do so they do they do have a website you can search it you get a lovely little when you join you get a little book don't you which guides
00:18:53
Speaker
Yes, you do, which is really good. And there's also a very good app that you can keep on your phone or just pull up and so you can put in where you are and it will tell you what is nearby.
Local and Workplace Membership Perks
00:19:08
Speaker
Well, I need that app for sure. But yes, so the National Art Pass is... It's £56.25 for a solo person, £84 for a joint.
00:19:22
Speaker
and £15 to include children. So now we've thought about our nationals, we've thought about our heritage organisations, we've thought about the National Art Pass. Maybe we should move a little bit closer to home and think about kind of other membership schemes that might not immediately come to mind. Yes, sort of local small places. The one that I've gone and looked at is Strawberry Hill House, which is relatively close to me.
00:19:48
Speaker
And if you're a member of that, you get all the free entry that you would expect, but you also get curator tours, invitations to events, newsletter. There's a level of community involvement as well as just supporting someone.
00:20:09
Speaker
Yeah, and it's almost like a crossover with a friend scheme. You start to meet people through the museum and develop a community through that scheme. So I think if there's someone near you that you want to support, definitely check if they've got a membership scheme as well. I joined 180 Studios, actually, last week, the membership, because they're in central London, just off the Strand, and they do a lot of digital and immersive exhibitions. And they've had two open last week.
00:20:38
Speaker
And it was cheaper to buy the membership for a year than it was to pay for those those two exhibitions. And Ender 18s go free anyway, it was £40 for the year. So if you are looking to go somewhere, do just have a look and see if they run a membership scheme and will it work out better value to do it that way? And also what it is where you want to support. First of all, see what you can already get for no extra charge as part of your work perks. So my partner who works in retail
00:21:08
Speaker
he gets historic royal palaces entry for the family free. So he has to be there. He has to show his work pass. He has to use a particular way of booking them. But it does mean that we've got access to those. So have a look. See on your internet or ask your HR department or just ask around and see what you already get. The other thing which I use through my employment. So I'm classified as public sector and paid by the council for my museum job.
00:21:37
Speaker
sorry, the Corporation of London by my job, which is essentially a local, I'm a local council employee. And I get to join the CSSC, which is a fantastic charity. I think it has something like 140,000 members. So it's a members organization.
00:21:53
Speaker
And what it does is all about making sure that people's spare time is more enjoyable. So they've been going for well over 100 years. And one of the perks that I use most of it is English Heritage. So they've bought corporate membership for English Heritage. And as a CSSC member, I can go to any English Heritage for free with myself, one guest, and up to six kids. And that includes free parking as well. So that is a great perk. But they also then give discounts off lots of other things.
00:22:24
Speaker
So there's always places coming up. And when we were in Northumberland, we went to Anak Garden. I used a discount through CSSC to purchase my tickets for that. They do things like cinema.
00:22:36
Speaker
money for shopping and also events. So members will buy theatre tickets and create special days out, and then you can purchase, produce theatre tickets. And then you'll go with a group of people as well. So it's a really great scheme. And it's a very, very wide membership base. When you say a public sector, you can actually be working for private company who take on public contracts and you're eligible.
00:23:00
Speaker
Well, I've discovered that as a BBC pensioner, I'm allowed to join. Wow. I'm really pleased about that. Yes. I rave about it. I absolutely love
Annual Tickets: Worth the Investment?
00:23:11
Speaker
it. They are one of my clients, but that is because I love them so much. And it is £4.99 a month or £4.50 if you're retired or receiving a pension. Which is me. Hurrah. We'll have to try and get some theatre tickets together, Catherine. Absolutely.
00:23:28
Speaker
So that's great about, like you said, see what you've already got or you're already entitled to through work, or even if you're retired through previous work as well. And then the other thing is to see what's already in your wallet. Yes, because sometimes you buy a ticket and it actually lasts all year.
00:23:46
Speaker
Yeah, which is nice because sometimes you might only go somewhere once or you think, oh, I'll just go once and pay. But then they usually run events throughout the years. I'm thinking especially for families here, you know, half term, there's blinking loads of them. There's a lot of days to fill. So if you've been somewhere and you've got this ticket and you can go back for free, it's just a nice way of going back, timing it with their activities and just seeing it from a different perspective. Yeah.
00:24:12
Speaker
My favourite of this is the Royal Collection Trust, so that is Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace Muse, Holyrood House. So you buy your ticket and you must sign it when you're there and get it stamped. But provided you sign it and get it stamped, which costs nothing, it is a ticket for a year. And so you can just fetch up. If you visit Buckingham Palace, you actually
00:24:41
Speaker
you do need to book a slot but it will be free but certainly for the muse in Windsor Castle you just fetch up. I love the Royal Muse with kids and again they do like the family tours and the craft activities are half-term so you know you hang out with the king's horses it's a very pleasant way to do it. The ones that come to mind for me are the London Transport Museum it's about 20 odd pounds for an adult ticket but that's for a whole year
00:25:09
Speaker
and children are free anyway so and kids love them going back to the London Transport Museum, they never seem to get bored. Grown-ups love it as well, this grown-up absolutely loves the London Transport Museum. Sorry, you're right. And then also the Postal Museum as well. So we've recently, we went to the Food Museum for the first time. Where is the Food Museum? I can say Stowmarket. Oh!
00:25:36
Speaker
Uh, it's actually a really interesting place. It's, it's kind of like on the, it feels like it's on the edge of a sort of suburban shopping center, like a small one. Um, but you go and it's, it's all about food and bringing people back to the lands. When we went, they had this big new kitchen where they were cooking foraged food for you to try. So it was a demonstration kitchen and you've got to try all of these. So I tried dandelion honey for the first time.
00:26:00
Speaker
And she shared recipes and was chatting to us for ages about how to, you can forage your own food. So it's got really good ethos and it was also really relaxed and quiet. And we had, they were like, do you want to make it annual? It doesn't cost anything. I was like, yeah. Because I think what happens for the annual, you normally donate.
00:26:17
Speaker
your entry ticket and then in return they classify it differently so that's why it suddenly becomes you can go back for a year. So yes we need to go back now Autumn's here and see what's cooking in the kitchen at the studio. The Stowmarket area is a beautiful area, perfect excuse.
Episode Conclusion and Engagement
00:26:33
Speaker
We had the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth is an annual pass so that's where I'm going to be in Falmouth next week so I shall be reusing my ticket
00:26:45
Speaker
excellent in your wallet, so check what's in your wallet. So I think we've covered quite a few different types of memberships now and hopefully given people an idea of what's out there and what types as well as specific examples that we've hadn't used. We hope you've enjoyed this episode of the exhibitionists. We've loved sharing our thoughts and our memberships with you. Thanks so much for listening.
00:27:06
Speaker
If you've enjoyed it, please hit the subscribe button and leave us a review. Maybe let us know which memberships you have. You can find us on Instagram at the Exhibitionist part. Or me, Catherine, at Cultural Wednesday. Or me, Vicky, at Museum Mum. Music is Positive Hip Hop by Maxco Music from Tuzik. Catch you next time on the Exhibitionist. Until then, stay curious and enjoy those cultural adventures.