| Description |
This publication is for all those who plan, design, fund, manage, resource, programme and develop learning spaces within museums, galleries, and built and natural heritage sites.
You can learn a lot about an organisation from its learning space. For a start, does it have one? Is it in the basement hidden from view, or proudly visible and prominent on the ground floor or above? Is it large or small – can it accommodate a class of 30 pupils and their teachers or will it only take a small group? Is it fit-for-purpose? Does it serve departments other than learning? Who programmes it, and how is it resourced and maintained?
Answering these questions can reveal much about the values – and leadership – of an organisation, about whether it places learning at the heart of its mission, and about how it positions itself within its community.
There are many factors that come into play when planning learning spaces. One is size: small organisations may have space limitations to work with. Another is age: if a building is listed then it may be impossible to create the ideal space, whereas new-build spaces can be planned more flexibly to meet the needs of their audiences. However, there are certain principles which can apply whatever the size, age, and constraints of a particular building, and whatever your available budget for developing or improving your space. |