Learning together, and from each other’s experiences, is central to Growing Together.
The project (just as Travelling Together before it) is powered by the readiness of the museums community to learn.
The Growing Together Champions are central to this way of working. Their roles will bring us together to explore key Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) themes in the form of peer networks.
These peer network events will be taking place, online and around the region, over twelve months from March 2025 to March 2026.
These events are beginning to be shaped by our Champions’ commitment and enthusiasm. Champions are exploring ideas for supportive sessions that will meet museums wherever their starting point is, share examples of good practice and inspire participants to take next steps towards increasing equity and inclusion.
The Champions are being supported in their roles by the project team and by our project Steering Group. Along the way, Champions may share their own journeys, passions and lived experience. We’re very grateful to them all for stepping into these roles for Growing Together.
Want to meet our Champions and understand what motivates them in their Champion roles?
Jan English
Collections and Public Engagement Director
The American Museum & Gardens
I was so grateful for the support in taking part in Travelling Together programme with my museum and gained so much in terms of confidence, perspective and tools. I want to give back to others and share my expertise, challenges I have faced both personally and organisationally and how I have overcome these. I want to continue to support the programme and drive change in museums across the South West.
John Polatch
Communities Officer
SS Great Britain
My experience is that work with museums can be truly transformational for all involved. Connecting people together to imagine new things in new ways with powerful outcomes is totally possible. But somehow the power of these things doesn’t reach its potential to change at a lasting, organisational level. How can we work together to make that happen?
Marcelle Bacchus
Head of Engagement
Glastonbury Abbey
I think that there is a misunderstanding about diversity and that for sites that are not in cities we need to look specifically at who make up our local and wider communities and how we meet and engage with them. I think that a big part of what we need to do is about having confidence, and that starts with educating ourselves.
Wren Sidhe
Volunteer
The Holburne Museum
I am passionate about inclusion and am aware of the many barriers replicated across heritage sites. Class, cost, unspoken rules of behaviour, the way text is written, for example. I like the concept of equity rather than equality because it chimes with the idea of intersectionality.
Sally Lewis
Freelance Curator
Being a Champion will allow me to share my lived experience & learn from that of others, support & be supported in this journey; and contribute to change at local, strategic and systemic level. I will use my experience as co-producer at Active Inclusion: Equity in Employment and dance in museums specialism in this role.
Erin Taylor
Heritage It Systems Technician & Casual Visitor Experience Host
Bath & North East Somerset Heritage Services
I have lived experience of a variety of barriers to access. I am looking for best practice which I can share. It is important for the museums community to lead these sessions to make sure everyone feels included, happy and welcomed properly. Therefore, it is important to work together to tear down as many barriers to access as we can.
Erin has previously run peer networks around Transgender inclusion and sensory maps.
Hannah Bradbury Crowther
Curator of Diverse Histories
National Museum of the Royal Navy
I hope to achieve a way for heritage institutions to reflect their communities that is beneficial to both the community and the sector. Institutions have to consider the [possibility of] backlash with any work they do, and so I would like to be part of the solution that pushes beyond these barriers. Along with the other Champions, I hope to collectively achieve a way to support people to make tangible, notable changes, and to gain confidence in their abilities.
Hannah has previously run peer networking sessions on how to deal with the ever-evolving language around EDI.
Helen Marshall
Learning Officer
Aerospace Bristol
I want to be a driving force in making the heritage sector feel more welcoming, relevant, accessible and enjoyable to all. I hope that a wider audience will feel that their local museums are relevant in their community and that there is benefit to visiting. Through working together, we can enrich visitors’ experiences and lead the way in making museums for everyone.
Helen has previously run peer networks looking at who tells our stories in museums and using the senses to explore our collections.
Luci Forbes
Visitor Welcome and Retail Assistant
Royal Cornwall Museum
I am passionate about making places within the heritage sector more accessible especially for disabled adults. I hope I will be able to not only help make the visitor experience more universally accessible but also educate people on the importance of making heritage sites welcoming and approachable for people no matter their background or abilities.
Luci has previously run peer networks on the Foundations of EDI.
What’s coming up between March and July 2025? Peer Network themes will include:
- Transgender inclusion
- Meeting sensory needs and using the senses
- Exploring ever-changing language
- Making the most of your sensory bags or activity backpacks to enhance the museum experience
- Access reviews and making access improvements
Do you want to hear more about the peer networks?
Please email [email protected] with the email subject ‘Growing Together Peer Networks’, and we will send you dates and details of the sessions as soon as they are confirmed.