West Berkshire Museum

West Berkshire Museum in Newbury.

We are closed to the public from Monday 28 September, re-opening with a new exhibition on Thursday 1 April 2010. We are continuing our Museum Bookshop mail order service, the Photograph order service and our Enquiry service. For details of these please select the link at the bottom of this page. Our staff will be available to help you.

The Museum has over 100,000 objects or groups of items in its collections. These need regular inspection and preventative conservation measures such as cleaning and re-packing. The records for many of these items need updating, so that staff can look after them for future generations and locate them more efficiently when they are required for displays, etc. We also need to begin clearing the galleries not open to the public, these items have to be carefully packed and stored off-site to protect them.

Since the Museum was subject to an Enforcement Notice from the Fire Service in May 2008 access to much of the building is severely restricted. As well as the closure of galleries, staff are prevented from spending anymore than minimal time in the storage areas.

The closure will enable staff to use the accessible space to focus on looking after the collections and preparing for next spring's special exhibition programme. We will be able to carry out vital work on the museum collections bringing long-term benefits to their care and use in public exhibitions, etc.

Our two major exhibitions for 2010 will be:

     West Berkshire Archaeology

          Featuring recent discoveries and items from the past.

          Thursday 1 April to Sunday 27 June 2010

     The Kennet & Avon Canal

          An exhibition celebrating 200 years of the K&A Canal.

          Thursday 15 July to Thursday 30 September 2010

Please note that during the closure we are not undertaking any alterations to the buildings. When we reopen in April 2010 the Cloth Hall and first floor galleries will be closed but many of the objects previously displayed in these galleries will feature in our new exhibitions and displays, including exhibiting recent acquisitions.

► Museum Shop

We aim to stock all local history books, including those written and published by the Museum. Visit this page for more information about our mail order service and details of the full range of books that we sell.

► Sense of Place South East

West Berkshire Museum is part of Sense of Place South East (SoPSE). A website that brings you images and information about South East England. Our SoPSE webpages explore the history of Greenham & Crookham Commons.