Museum and Shaw House reopen in late May

West Berkshire Museum and Shaw House will be reopening to the public in May 2021, subject to the confirmation of Step 3 in the easing of Government restrictions.
West Berkshire Museum will reopen on Wednesday 19 May, and then opens every Wednesday to Saturday, 10am – 4pm. The Museum will open with a new community-led exhibition, ‘Together’, which explores the courtship and wedding traditions of some local people from varying cultural backgrounds. Visitors can also enjoy some of the longer running exhibitions, such as ‘The Stories We Tell’ which looks into folk tales and the relationship between fact and fiction. The gift shop, accessible toilet and baby changing facilities will be open. Staff may ask you to queue at the designated entrance, and there will be a separate exit. For full information about the Covid security measures, please visit https://www.westberkshireheritage.org/west-berkshire-museum-plan-your-visit .
Shaw House will reopen for visits to the House and grounds on Saturday 29 May. It will then be open 11am – 4 pm every weekend until Sunday 26 September, and every Monday to Friday during school holidays from 10am – 4pm. You can visit
the new exhibition ‘Dressed for Shaw’ to discover the history of Shaw House through period costume displays. Also, a ‘Dressed for Battle’ civil war exhibition shows fine examples of arms and armour from the Littlecote House collection, on loan from the Royal Armouries Museum.
Visitors can also enjoy an Open Air Sculpture Exhibition from Saturday 29 May – Sunday 27 June, 11am – 4pm on the Orangery Lawn at Shaw House. Sculptures will be well spaced apart to allow social distancing. All works on display will be available for purchase. The toilets and shop will be open, along with the café which will be running a take-away service. The staff may ask you to queue to get into the building.
Entry to the Museum and Shaw House is free, but donations are most welcome. Visit the website www.westberkshireheritage.org for more information.