Museums and Metro partnership

This February half term museums and galleries across Tyneside have teamed up with Tyne and Wear Metro to offer families good value, high-quality days out.  

Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums’ (TWAM) free ‘Ways to Play’ event programme, sponsored by Tyne and Wear Metro, is at venues in Newcastle - the Great North Museum: Hancock, Laing Art Gallery, Discovery Museum; at South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, Wallsend’s Segedunum Roman Fort, North Shields’ Stephenson Steam Railway and Gateshead’s Shipley Art Gallery. The full programme can be seen here. 

Tyne and Wear Metro is TWAM’s official travel partner, with almost all of the nine museums and galleries they manage located close to Metro stations.    

TWAM is encouraging people to use the Metro to travel to its venues, especially families looking for a good value day out - up to three children aged 11 and under can travel for free on the Metro and the Shields Ferry with a fare-paying adult.

Clare Smith, Learning and Engagement Manager at TWAM, said:  

 “We’re committed to ensuring that all families can enjoy our museums and galleries for fun and educational days out and that the cost of visiting shouldn’t be a barrier. 

"Whilst our venues are mostly free to visit and they are all free for under 16s, there are often hidden costs to a day out including transport and this new partnership with Tyne and Wear Metro helps us to offer a great value way to travel to our museums and galleries.   

“We’re very grateful to Tyne and Wear Metro for their support with the Ways to Play event programme.”  

 Huw Lewis, Customer Services Director at Nexus said:

 “We’re delighted to be partnering with TWAM this half term. They have some fantastic local venues for families to enjoy and we can get visitors there quickly and affordably.  

 “When we launched our permanent price promise of Kids Go Free last year, we wanted to help families get back out and about on Metro at very low costs.  

 “Three children aged 11 and under can travel for free with a paying adult, all day, every day, and with so many activities on offer through Ways to Play at the museums, half term can be great value and great fun.”   

Ways to Play activities include:  Families visiting Discovery Museum can make a treasure chest inspired by the 19^th century strongbox used to keep Newcastle’s money and documents safe - ‘The Town Hutch’, on display at the museum in the Newcastle Story display. At the Great North Museum: Hancock visitors can find out about home life in Ancient Greece and the story of the voyage to the afterlife in Ancient Egypt by meeting characters from the past and creating crafts to take home. Visitors to Stephenson Steam Railway will be able to make a collage inspired by shapes in the museum and at the Shipley Art Gallery in Gateshead, families will be shown how to make their own rainbow garden decorations.  

Entry to all TWAM venues is free, and no booking is required, except for Segedunum Roman Fort where adults over 16 pay £4.95 and concessions £2.95. At Segedunum children under the age of 16 always go free, as do residents of the NE28 postcode.