At The Devil’s Porridge Museum we are always delighted to welcome families of all shapes and sizes! We are open 10am – 5pm Monday to Saturday and 10am – 4pm on Sundays with our last entry 45 minutes before closing time. Find our latest admission prices and opening hours here>
We’re proud to have been shortlisted for Kids in Museum’s “The Most Family Friendly Museum in the UK” award in 2019.
Family Favourites
There’s lots to enjoy during a family visit to The Devil’s Porridge Museum. Here are our top 10 family favourites:
- Use your factory pass to clock in at different points downstairs in the museum. Show a member of our museum team at our front desk your finished factory pass to receive a small prize (this prize is exclusively for kids!)
- Explore our replica WW1 trench. Are you brave enough to put your hand inside the wall and find out what objects from the trenches are hidden inside? Look through our periscope and be sure to keep an eye out for our friendly plastic rat hidden somewhere around here…
- Look out for Harry and Ruby during your visit. They will give you more information about their life as a soldier and a munition worker during WW1. You can even have a go at Ruby’s quiz on one of our touchscreens!
- Enjoy our interactive displays. Use our touchscreen displays to pack your own evacuee’s suitcase, have a go at our puzzle and learn much more. There’s also lots of headsets to listen to around the museum.
- Dress up! We’ve got lots of dressing up clothes you can try on upstairs in the museum from aprons, to gas masks and uniforms. Remember to take some photos!
- Take control of a nuclear power station (well, pretend to). Sit at our control desk for Chapelcross and explore the inside of the nuclear power station on a touchscreen. There’s lots of switches and lights on this desk which you can use.
- See our WW1 fireless locomotive Sir James! Be sure to visit Sir James outside The Devil’s Porridge Museum. You can even climb up the stairs and go inside.
- Sit in our replica Anderson shelter. You can find our Anderson shelter around the left side of the museum just past our café. Be sure to look at our Dig for Victory Garden while you’re there! If you live locally you might like to join our gardening club for young people, who help us grow all the plants here. We use the food we grow in our Dig for Victory Garden in our café.
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- 1. Bear with his Factory Pass.
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- 2. Bear’s ready to explore the replica WW1 trench.
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- 3. Harry and Ruby will tell you more about their lives during World War One
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- 4. There’s lots of interactives for Bear to enjoy.
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- 6. Sometimes even our museum team like to dress up! Here’s our youth council having some fun for Digital Takeover Day!
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- 7. Who left Bear in charge of a nuclear power station?
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- 8. Remember to look at Sir James!
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- 9. Sit in our replica Anderson shelter!
More to do.
How about playing a game during your visit? Here are some suggestions:
- Can you find something in The Devil’s Porridge Museum which begins with each letter of the alphabet? Remember to look outside the museum too! For example, A for Anderson shelter, B for book, C for Chapelcross and so on. Bonus points to anyone who finds anything for X, Y, Z (we found those the hardest ones!)
- How many objects of the same colour can you spot in The Devil’s Porridge Museum? Choose a colour and count how many things you can see that are that colour during your visit. Or you could play colour bingo. Choose a colour and see which member of your family can find something in the museum that colour first!
- Why not take turns to pretend to be a museum guide and show or tell your family about your favourite part or objects in The Devil’s Porridge Museum? This could be particularly fun if you’ve already visted the museum before!
- Choose an object in or outside The Devil’s Porridge Museum and see if anyone can guess it by asking yes or no questions!
Can’t visit the museum today? Why not take a look at our educational resources that you can use at home here, there’s even a coin rubbing challenge for you to try out!
Family Facilities
We have lots of facilities in The Devil’s Porridge Museum to make sure that your visit is as enjoyable and comfortable as possible.
Our museum is fully accessible for wheelchair, walking frame and buggy or pushchair with a lift to the second floor. If you would prefer to leave your buggy or pushchair somewhere during your visit, speak to a member of our museum team.
You are welcome to breastfeed here. We have baby changing facilities in our accessible toilet and we also have small steps around the Museum so smaller children can access the displays. Find out more about accessibility here>
We do have own family friendly café where you would be welcome to buy some food and drinks. There are some picnic tables located outside the museum that you would be welcome to use if you decide to bring your own packed lunch. We offer free tap water refills for water bottles.
There is hand sanitiser located around The Devil’s Porridge Museum that you are welcome to use. You do not have to wear a face mask in The Devil’s Porridge Museum or café, but please feel welcome to do so if this makes you feel more comfortable. Please be aware that other visitors or members of our museum team may be wearing face masks during your visit.
Only assistance and guide dogs are allowed inside our museum and café. You would be welcome to sit in the outside seating area of our café with a dog.
Shop
Our shop offers a selection of replicas, books, gifts and toys including some pocket money items.
Café
Our main menu is served from 10:30am to 2pm and has children’s options. Some of these come with a wee colouring in book to enjoy.
Our café also has highchairs that you would be welcome to use.
You can find out more about our café here>
Family Events
Throughout the year The Devil’s Porridge Museum hosts a huge selection of events and activities for families. These range from our popular annual Christmas and Halloween Kids Parties to our seasonal Gardening Club, programme of school holiday workshops and our term time Arts and Crafts Club, there’s something for everyone!
Learn more about what’s happening by checking out our events page here>
Keep up to date with all our family events by regularly checking our Facebook and / or Twitter pages. All our upcoming events are shared here!
We also offer volunteering opportunities for young people. Learn more about this here>
We would love to see your photos of your visit to The Devil’s Porridge Museum, or any events you have attended here recently. Why not share them with us on social media?
