Elmbridge Museum has the special privilege of being a virtual museum. There is no specific building to visit, instead the exhibits and collections are on our website, in school lessons, or in collection cases around the borough. This is what Amy Swainston our Exhibitions and Interpretation Officer, loves most about her role, the historical collections have significance to the local community. The collections come to the community; they have relevance to local history and in the case of Amy’s most recent project, they are even relevant to the future of the planet.

In 2021 Amy worked with the year six students at local school, Hinchley Wood Primary. They used items in Elmbridge Museum’s collection to learn about how climate change is affecting local life. By studying historic evidence of extreme weather, transport and green space, the students compared our local environment ‘then’ and ‘now’. The result is 83 fantastic posters, which answer the question – ‘Why does climate change matter?’

“To see the level of thought and research the children put into their work was wonderful. It not only shows the importance the children play in protecting the planet but also how relevant the Elmbridge Museum is to the local community”, explains Amy.

The work of these students demonstrates the importance of our work towards a sustainable Elmbridge.