Wolverhampton Arts and Culture

We have 3 distinct cultural venues in our service:

• Wolverhampton Art Gallery

• Bantock House Museum

• Bilston Gallery

What We Offer Visiting Schools:

Authentic experiences with artworks and museum objects underpin all the sessions at Wolverhampton Art Gallery. The gallery holds one of the biggest Pop Art collections in the country, including artworks by Andy Warhol, Pauline Boaty, and Richard Hamilton. The Black Art Collection features artworks from black British artists, including Keith Piper, Yinka Shonibare and Turner Prize winner Lubaina Himid.

We offer interactive sessions for primary, secondary, Further Education, Higher Education and SEND pupils, with learning opportunities that are multi-sensory, skills-based and engaging. Whether you are looking for a hands-on art workshop or a gallery tour, children have the opportunity to explore inspiring artworks and work with professional artists and arts educators.

Sessions include printmaking, drawing, painting, watercolour, clay sculpture, Modroc sculpture, plaster casting and object handling from the ancient civilisations and fossils collections.

Our team can offer guided tours, talks, and facilitated discussions linked to our current exhibitions, collections, and individual works of art.

We welcome enquiries and visits from College, University, Adult Education, and Community Education groups.

Self-led visits are also available.

Why Choose Us for an Educational Visit:

Inspiring Art Experiences for Every Learner

Our taught sessions are designed for all key stages, from Primary School (KS1) through to Further Education (KS5). We also warmly welcome College, University, and Adult Education groups.

Each taught session includes a facilitated gallery tour and a creative, hands-on art workshop, giving learners the chance to explore our spectacular collections and exhibitions up close.

Expert-Led, Creative, and Engaging

Workshops are delivered by professional artists and art historians, ensuring every session is interactive, imaginative, and pitched at the right level for your students. Students work with high-quality art materials, all provided as part of your visit.

Designed for a Positive Learning Experience:

· All materials and equipment provided

· Friendly, welcoming staff who support your group throughout the visit

· Accessible, quiet learning spaces tailored to the needs of school groups

· Sessions designed to engage, inspire, and build creative confidence

Prefer to Lead Your Own Visit?

We also offer self-led visits, giving teachers and students the freedom to explore our galleries at their own pace.

Subjects and Topics Covered:

Our taught sessions cover a number of different areas of the curriculum, with a strong focus on Art and Design and History, and the natural world.

KS 1 Art and Design:

Ø Pupils should be taught to use a range of materials creatively to design and make products.

Ø Pupils should be taught to develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour, pattern, texture, line, shape, form and space.

Ø Pupils should be taught to use drawing, painting and sculpture to develop and share their ideas, experiences and imagination.

Ø Pupils should be taught about the work of a range of artists, craft makers and designers, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work.

KS 2 Art and Design:

Ø Pupils should be taught to develop their techniques, including their control and their use of materials, with creativity, experimentation and an increasing awareness of different kinds of art, craft and design.

Ø Pupils should be taught to create sketch books to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas.

Ø Pupils should be taught about great artists, architects and designers in history.

Ø Pupils should be taught to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials (for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay).

KS 1 History

Ø Pupils should develop an awareness of the past, using common words and phrases relating to the passing of time. They should know where the people and events they study fit within a chronological framework and identify similarities and differences between ways of life in different periods.

Ø Pupils should be taught about significant historical events, people and places in their own locality.

KS 2 History:

Ø Pupils should be taught about the achievements of the earliest civilizations – an overview of where and when the first civilizations appeared and a depth study of one of the following: Ancient Sumer; The Indus Valley; Ancient Egypt; The Shang Dynasty of Ancient China.

Ø Pupils should be taught about an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066 – such as r leisure and entertainment in the 20th Century.

Ø Pupils should be taught about the Roman Empire and its impact on Britain.

Ø Pupils should be taught about Ancient Greece – a study of Greek life and achievements and their influence on the western world.

Ø Pupils should be taught about study of an aspect or theme in British history that extends pupils’ chronological knowledge beyond 1066 – for example, the legacy of Greek or Roman culture (art, architecture or literature) on later periods in British history, including the present day.

KS 1 Science

Ø Pupils should be taught to distinguish between an object and the material from which it is made.

Ø Pupils should be taught to identify and compare the suitability of a variety of everyday materials, including wood, metal, plastic, glass, brick, rock, paper and cardboard for particular uses.

Ø Pupils should be taught to identify and name a variety of common wild and garden plants, including deciduous and evergreen trees.

Ø Pupils should be taught to identify and name a variety of common animals including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

KS 2 Science

Ø Pupils should be taught to describe in simple terms how fossils are formed when things that have lived are trapped within rock.

Pupils should be taught to recognise that living things have changed over time and that fossils provide information about living things that inhabited the Earth millions of years ago.

Ø Pupils should be taught to identify and describe the functions of different parts of flowering plants: roots, stem/trunk, leaves and flowers

Ø Pupils should use the local environment throughout the year to raise and answer questions that help them to identify and study plants and animals in their habitat.

Accreditation and Awards:

Museum Accreditation Arts Council England – UK Museum Accreditation Scheme | Arts Council England

Group Sizes Catered For:

Up to three groups of 30 students can be accommodated in one day at Wolverhampton Art Gallery. Specific workshops, such as Clay, Modroc, Fossils, and Ancient Civilisations, can accommodate 60 students.

Up to 30 per taught workshop and tour.

Up to 90 for self-led visit with appropriate notice and prior arrangement

Itineraries, Resources, and Workshops:

Facilitated sessions last 2 hours for groups of up to 30 and 60, 10.30am-12.30pm.

For groups of 90 sessions last 3 hours with a lunch break, 10.30am-2.30pm.

Masterclass timings are 10.30am-2.30pm for up to 30 students.

Sessions currently available at Wolverhampton Art Gallery for Primary School classes include:

• Pop Art Printmaking (KS 1 & KS 2)

• Collagraph Printing (KS 1 & KS 2)

• Portraits – Drawing or Painting (KS 1 & KS 2)

• Landscape & Nature – Watercolour Painting (KS 1 & KS 2)

• Clay Sculpture – Clay Animals or Clay Heads (KS 1 & KS 2)

• Mod-Roc Sculpture (KS 2)

• Ancient Egyptians with Clay Ushabti Sculpture (KS 2)

• Ancient Greeks with Clay Sculpture (KS 2)

• Ancient Romans with Plaster-Cast Coins (KS 2)

• Plaster Cast Fossils (KS 2)

Sessions currently available at Wolverhampton Art Gallery for Secondary School classes include:

Pop Art Printmaking (KS 3 & KS 4)

• Portraits – Drawing or Painting (KS 3 & KS 4)

• Landscape & Nature – Watercolour Painting (KS 3 & KS 4)

• Clay Sculpture (KS 3 & KS 4)

• Mod-Roc Sculpture (KS 3 & KS 4)

Taught masterclass sessions, led by professional artist-educators, are also available for Primary and Secondary School groups at Wolverhampton Art Gallery.

Masterclasses are currently offered in:

• Drawing

• Painting

• Printmaking

• Sculpture

Our team can offer guided tours, talks, and facilitated discussions linked to our current exhibitions, collections, and individual works of art.

We welcome enquiries and visits from College, University, Adult Education, and Community Education groups.

Self-led visits are also available.

Risk Assessment:

Accidents Procedure

First Aiders

Fire Safety and Evacuation

Safeguarding and DBS checks for staff and freelance educators

Public Liability Insurance

Education Department Information:

Creative Producer: Cultural Learning

Dr Andrew Yarnold

01902 552038

artsheritagelearning@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Pricing Information:

Until 31 March 2026. Prices after this date are available on request.

Up to 30 – £199

Up to 60 – £397

Up to 90 – £598

Facilities:

The Education Suite is situated in the historic half of the Art Gallery and is designed to accommodate schools and groups for a range of activities.

· Gathering Space – a classroom space for creative activities that accommodates 30 students.

· Creation Space – a smaller classroom space that can accommodate 20 students, often used as a lunch space or a quiet breakout space for students with SEN.

· Education Atrium – an open space that is often used for lunches, coat and bag storage and a quiet breakout space for SEN students.

Making Space is our purpose-designed community and family space that can accommodate up to 30 students for an art workshop or up to 40 students for a talk. The space includes a soft play area and a giant chalkboard wall.

The Pop Art gallery houses a selection of our world-class collection of Pop Art.

The Georgian and Victorian galleries showcase some of the historic artwork and objects in the Arts and Culture collection of 20,000 objects.

The Touring galleries host changing exhibitions that bring cutting-edge contemporary art to the city.

The Courtyard can be used as an outside breakout space for a small number of students.

The Art Gallery is situated next to St Peter’s Gardens, which surround St Peter’s Church.

Accessibility and Disabled Facilities:

We welcome all schools and want to ensure everyone has a great experience when they visit. • We’ve got a visual story about visiting: Visual Story. • You can borrow noise-cancelling headphones from the reception area. • Please ask if you need a quiet space during your visit or if you need somewhere private to pray.

There is level access throughout the building and lift access to all floors.

• We have a BSL introduction to the Art Gallery and a tour of the Pop Art Gallery available via QR code and prior to your visit on Youtube

• We have two picnic areas: the outside courtyard and the education atrium inside.

• We do not have a changing places toilet. The nearest changing place is at the Civic Centre during the week and Wolverhampton train station during the weekend.

• We have free wifi available.

• There is no parking at the Wolverhampton Art Gallery. There are disabled parking bays on Wulfruna Street outside the Arena Theatre.

• The train station and bus station are a 5-minute walk away.

Opening Hours:

Wolverhampton Art Gallery Opening Times

Monday to Saturday: 10.30am – 4.30pm Sunday: 11am – 4pm