SCOTTISH MARITIME MUSEUM ANNOUNCES FREE* TRANSPORT FOR AYRSHIRE SCHOOLS
Travel subsidy of up to £250 for primary schools taking part in STEM activities at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine
The Scottish Maritime Museum has today (Tuesday 8 October) announced a schools travel subsidy to increase the number of Ayrshire schoolchildren participating in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) activities at the Museum.
This is the second year running that the Scottish Maritime Museum has secured funding to offer local authority schools a travel subsidy of up to £250 towards private coach hire to the Museum, which is located on Harbour Road in Irvine.
The scheme, which applies to visits between now and June 2020, is designed, in particular, to enable schools in areas of deprivation or rural isolation or without access to public transport, to take part in Curriculum for Excellence linked out-of-school STEM learning at the Museum.
The Museum is accepting bookings for now until Summer 2020 but, as the funding is a fixed amount and therefore offered on a ‘first come, first served’ basis, schools are urged to get in touch now or as soon as they are able.
The STEM programme at the Scottish Maritime Museum, which is housed in a vast, former Victorian shipyard building on the Harbourside in Irvine, is exciting and relevant for all ages.
Schools can choose from a range of bookable activities for Nursery to S3 and bespoke staff-led guided tours and hands on workshops or self-led teacher trails for secondary schools.
Jamie Menzies, Learning and Access Officer at the Scottish Maritime Museum, explains:
With a nationally recognised collection of maritime heritage and engineering, the Scottish Maritime Museum is an exciting and directly relatable place for schoolchildren to embrace STEM learning, in particular engineering and mathematics.
“We have great trails, workshops and a flexible programme which means schools can choose between activities led by trained staff or self-guided experiences.
“We also offer ample space for packed lunches and schools can also combine a half day visit to the Museum with a trip to Irvine Harbourside.
“Our education team is also happy to develop bespoke sessions catered to an individual school’s needs.
“We’re excited to offer this travel subsidy and welcome more schoolchildren to the Museum, particularly those who have been unable to visit before due to prohibitive transport costs.”
The award-winning Scottish Maritime Museum is home to Scotland’s national maritime heritage collection.
Housed within Scotland’s ‘Cathedral of Engineering’, the Grade A listed 19th century Linthouse, the collection features historic ships, vessels and engineering designs which influenced the course of maritime history across the world.
The Museum also features the largest collection of shipbuilding and marine engineering tools in the country, an authentic 1920s shipyard worker’s tenement flat and the opportunity to climb aboard MV Kyles, the oldest Clydebuilt vessel still afloat in the UK.
On their visit, pupils of all ages can get curious, creative and inspired by investigating local and national history, seeing STEM principles in action and handling real historical objects.
Further information on the Scottish Maritime Museum’s education programme, including all the STEM experiences and outcomes, can be found online at www.scottishmaritimemuseum.org
Schools interested in accessing the STEM travel subsidy or booking a visit should contact the Museum’s education team by emailing education@scotmaritime.org.uk or calling 01294 278283.
