The Museum was recognised for its popular 'Make it Yours: Workshops in an Envelope' project...
Nottingham’s National Justice Museum has won a prestigious award after setting up a series of innovative workshops during lockdown.
As a result of its efforts throughout the pandemic, which included a ‘Workshop in an Envelope’ campaign distributing mindfulness activities to those struggling with isolation, the city-based institution picked up the Best Museums Change Lives Project award at this year’s Museums Change Lives ceremony.
This event aims to celebrate programmes that excel in one or more of the key areas promoted by the Museums Association: Promoting Health and Wellbeing; Creating Better Places; and Inspiring Engagement, Reflection and Debate.
Throughout the pandemic, the National Justice Museum conducted a number of workshops for people stuck at home, ranging from activities inspired by soap sculptures to the making of traditional worry dolls to show love and solidarity - with hundreds being made for display during Refugee Week.
Andrea Hadley-Johnson, Artistic Programme Manager at the National Justice Museum, said: “We’re totally thrilled that our ‘Workshops in an Envelope’ have been recognised with a national award. The activities reached 3,000 people during the most challenging of times, using the museum collection as a source of inspiration to share compassion, ignite creativity and encourage conversation.
“A heartfelt thank you to everyone who joined us to co-produce and distribute the handcrafted packs, with love. This is what museums are for.”
This campaign was set up after COVID restrictions brought weekly in-person sessions to a halt, with the Museum having to act quickly to ensure it could continue providing a source of escapism and introspection for the people of Nottingham.
By receiving materials and information in the post, those forced to isolate were helped through a challenging period by getting the chance to focus on an array of exciting and thought-provoking exercises devised by staff.
Chief Executive Victoria Reeves explained: “Against the backdrop of lockdown, our team worked innovatively to think about how we could continue reaching out and engaging at the very time that people needed it most and we were thrilled at how well the workshops in an envelope were received and the reach they had. We are so delighted that our work has been recognised in this way.”
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