Group visit guidelines
For all enquiries relating to visiting Wellcome
Collection please contact our Visitor Services team:
T +44 (0)20 7611 2222
E info@wellcomecollection.org
Download a
version of these guidelines for groups [pdf, 240KB]
Before your visit
If you are planning to bring a group of 8 or more to look around
on your own, or would like to arrange a private guided tour, please
complete our group visit enquiry
form. Please make sure you contact us about your group's
visit, even if you are not having a guided tour.
Please keep your group booking confirmation for your own records,
and let us know if any of the details change before visiting - for
example, if your group size changes. If you are bringing a
group of Year 10 students or older, please let us know as soon as
possible if you would like us to tailor our tour content to a
specific subject area. All visitors should be aware that the
permanent exhibitions and many of our special exhibitions contain
human remains, objects with sexual content and/or images of graphic
surgical procedures. Please contact us if you would like to discuss
our exhibition content in more depth.
Getting here
Wellcome Collection is located at 183 Euston Road, NW1 2BE,
diagonally opposite Euston Station. It is easily reachable by
bus, train and tube.
Getting
here
We cannot accommodate coaches, so you will need to make your own
parking arrangements if you are bringing a group by coach. The
nearest coach drop-off point is outside the Bloomsbury Theatre at
15 Gordon Street, a few minutes’ walk away. There are also
several parking meters nearby, with a maximum stay of two hours. At
Euston station there is a 230-space APCOA underground car park. We
do have a small number of Blue Badge parking spaces available.
Please
contact us for further
information about this.
On arrival
On arrival, please go to the Information Point in the ground floor
reception area. If you are having a tour, your guide will meet you
there. Toilet and cloakroom facilities can be found on the ground
floor, with additional toilets on the first floor. However, please
travel light because the cloakroom might not be able to accommodate
multiple items from large groups. Please also note that we are
currently checking bags on entry to Wellcome Collection, due to
heightened security levels in London.
To improve use of the Wellcome Collection
cloakroom, a deposit system is currently in place. The procedure
for leaving items in the cloakroom is as follows:
- There is a £1 returnable deposit for items left in the
cloakroom. A plastic tag is issued, and lost tags lose the £1
deposit.
- The lockers in the cloakroom also take a £1 returnable deposit.
We clear the lockers daily and hold any left items in lost property
for one week.
- Any unclaimed £1 coins are put towards the charitable work of
the Wellcome Trust.
Please note we are in a limited position to offer change.
Important: Please let us know
if you are running late or unable to make it for your allocated
slot by calling us on 020 7611 2222.
Managing your group
Due to the size and nature of the exhibition spaces,
please ensure that large groups are divided into agreed group sizes
before arrival (maximum 20 people per group). School groups must be
accompanied by a teacher or responsible adult at all times.
We require a minimum ratio of one accompanying
adult to 20 students. Please note that all children under the age
of 14 must be accompanied by an adult. Risk assessments for school
visits are available on request.
Please note that these risk assessments are for information only
and are not designed to replace your own risk assessments where
necessary.
Inside the exhibitions
Photography for personal use is allowed in our two permanent
exhibitions, Medicine Man and Medicine Now; we just ask that you refrain from
using a flash or a tripod. In our temporary exhibitions, all
photography is prohibited due to copyright restrictions. Sketching
in the galleries is encouraged, but with dry materials. Please make
sure that your group are aware of the gallery rules: no touching
the objects, no leaning on glass cases and no running. Please also
be aware that other tours may be taking place.
Eating
Wellcome Collection does not have a dedicated area for eating
packed lunches, and only food purchased on the premises can be
eaten within the designated café area. Food and drink may not be
consumed in any other areas of the building. In warmer months, you
might like to consider visiting the nearby parks, including
Gordon Square and
Tavistock Square, which are a few minutes’ walk away. The
Plaza outside Euston Station also has picnic tables available for
public use. Wellcome Collection includes a Peyton & Byrne
café, which serves a range of drinks, snacks and light meals.
Please be aware that it is not possible to book tables in the café
and there is limited seating during busy periods.
Accessibility
Wellcome Collection is wheelchair accessible and offers a range of
services for users with disabilities, including Blue Badge parking
spaces and induction loops. Please refer to our
access page for further information, and feel
free to contact us if you would like to talk about any special
needs you have:
T +44 (0)20 7611 2222
E access@wellcomecollection.org
Additional resources
We do not provide any educational resources to
support self-guided visits or guided tours. However, you
can find a host of information relating to themes and objects on
display – including videos and interactive displays – in our
Explore section.
Teachers or educational group leaders may find
the following additional materials useful:
Wellcome Collection houses a Blackwell
bookshop that stocks a wide variety of books relating to medicine,
science, history and art. There are also gifts from the Wellcome
Collection range. Please make sure that students visit the bookshop
in small, supervised groups.
Exhibition content
For further information about the content of
our exhibitions, please see our Exhibitions page. Image galleries are
available that allow you to browse the various sections of the
galleries.