The museum scooped the prestigious Museum of the Year award, the largest in the world, pocketing £120,000 after a three-year renovation.
The Young V&A has been named the Museum of the Year, ahead of the National Portrait Gallery and the Manchester Museum. The museum, based in Bethnal Green, East London, was described as ‘truly inspirational’ by the judges, with Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director, calling it ‘the world’s most joyful museum’.
The prize, worth £120,000, is organised by Art Fund and is awarded annually to a museum or gallery with a ‘track record of imagination, innovation and excellence’. Judges praised the Young V&A’s reimagining of its collection and location after a three-year makeover that cost £13 million.
Previously known as the Museum of Childhood, it was described as ‘a place where childhood went to die’ by the Guardian, ‘inhabited by rows of Victorian doll’s houses that were designed for older visitors to take a trip down memory lane’.
The museum was reopened by the Princess of Wales earlier this year. Credit: Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
‘The Young V&A has done something completely rare, it’s completely reimagined the museum,’ said Ms Waldman. ‘It started with its target audience and then it fit all the pieces of the museum — the building, the collection, display, interpretation, exhibitions, learning — around that central focus of young people.’
Other museums on the shortlist included the National Portrait Gallery, which has just undergone a £41.3 million refurbishment, and the Manchester Museum, which opened its doors after a £15 million glow up in 2022. Dundee Contemporary Arts and the Craven Museum in Skipton were also in contention for the prize.
The museum sector has been feeling a financial squeeze in recent years, with Ms Waldman telling the Sunday Times that investment was ‘contracting in a very worrying way’. ‘Museums, local authorities and the national government all need to think together about how to empower museums to create the conditions for people and communities to thrive,’ Waldman added. ‘Museums are absolutely up for it, they’re already doing incredible work.’
The museum’s main hall. Credit: Luke Hayes/Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said: ‘This year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year was a tough competition with an exciting shortlist representing institutions from across the country. Congratulations to the Young V&A on this achievement, recognising their hard work to create a unique space dedicated to young people.’
Dr Helen Charman, Director of Young V&A, said: ;We’re thrilled to win Art Fund Museum of the Year 2024 and to have been part of a shortlist of such brilliant museums changing lives across the UK. This win is a clarion call for the vital role of creativity, culture and play in children’s lives when so many opportunities have been taken away through the cost-of-living crisis and ongoing under-investment in creative education nationally.’
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