Royal Armouries Museum

The Royal Armouries delivers an exciting programme of fast-paced, audience-focussed public events which you could play a central role in the development, administration, production and delivery of. We are hiring a new events officer based full time in Leeds: 💰 £26,250 pa 📰 Full time contract ⏰ Deadline 5th Jan 2025 Apply now: https://lnkd.in/evcA4MX4 #royalarmouries #leeds #museum #museumjobs #heritagejobs #leeds

Today we participated in Leeds Creative Skills Festival and engaged students with some of our handling kit to help begin conversations about how museums can help careers with volunteering and skills building. We also talked to students about the wide range of opportunities available in museums and heritage sites for creative careers. #careers #museum #heritage #royalarmouries #LCSF24

We’re delighted to announce Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP as headline sponsor for the Royal Armouries Museum Sixth Form Debating Competition 2024. On Wednesday 27th November, the Royal Armouries Museum will host its second annual sixth-form debating competition with The Leeds Salon. The Leeds Salon is a discussion group founded in 2009, which organises public discussion around political, cultural and scientific issues as well as organising debating competitions and debate training in schools and colleges in Leeds. The Royal Armouries Sixth Form Debating Competition 2024 will welcome students from six schools across Leeds to debate issues such as ‘Smartphones should be banned in the classroom’, ‘Cancel culture is a threat to freedom of speech’, and ‘Humanity should fear advances in artificial intelligence’.  The competition uses the format and topic guides of Debating Matters. The final will take place in the African & Asian Gallery, before the winners’ announcements at the end of the day. Thank you to Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP for supporting this event.

What a week at the Royal Armouries! Lots going on around the theme of economic growth - from the cultural and creative industries as a driver of growth and cohesion, to the power of our regional organisations exporting products, services and ideas globally. We welcomed Chris Bryant MP as part of the Museums Association conference, and shared information on one of our education initiatives with local schools- Mightier Than The Sword. Helen Featherstone and the team from the National Lottery Heritage Fund were also on site and were able to try out the new Digital Playground, an interactive experience funded by Heritage Fund. A sign of how digital can bring storytelling to life in the world's oldest museum and a step in our wider journey of change. Thanks to National Lottery players and Heritage Fund for their support and for helping the cultural sector deliver impactful experiences for all of us to enjoy. And finally, a taste of what Yorkshire is doing best on an international level, with 'Made in Yorkshire, Sold to the World', a forum hosted by the Department for Business and Trade as part of International Trade Week providing networking and support for businesses wanting to increase their exports to the world. Lots to celebrate, lots to look forward to.

Our newest temporary display is now up on the 2nd floor, featuring ballistic plates from the conflict in Ukraine. They were damaged by incoming fire, saving the life of the soldier wearing them. Continuing a centuries-old tradition of armour being used as a medium for religious art, the armour has been painted with imagery from the Eastern Orthodox Church. The plates are on loan from N P Aerospace, and will be on display on the second floor for the next sixth months. #armsandarmour #leeds #royalarmouries

A thought-provoking, energetic and well-attended Museums Association conference and a last session that was right on the mark. Closing remarks from Cheryl Martin from Red Ladder Theatre - that through collaboration we can do great things. We heard from a stellar panel on how to secure the future of museums: - Laura Pye, Director National Museums Liverpool - Simon Mellor, Deputy Director Arts Council England - Zak Mensah, Co-CEO Birmingham Museums Trust - Tony Butler, Director Derby Museums - Lord Chris Smith of Finsbury Chaired by our very own Nat Edwards. There was a passionate discussion about how organisations can link to mission-led government and the instrumental role to play in driving economic growth. The intrinsic value of culture was celebrated, as was boosting educational attainment. The panel acknowledged the difficult challenges facing many museums and the need to tackle these head-on, particularly the issue of funding. The future happens in the present, and the challenges will continue, but by coming together to debate and find the joy, we increase the impact we can make together. We've certainly enjoyed hosting such a vibrant collection of people, thanks to the Museums Association for organising, all of you for coming and Royal Armouries Conference & Events for delivering the event. It's the turn of St. Fagans Museum, part of Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales next year, we'll see you there. #Museums2024

It's been wonderful to welcome so many museums, heritage and cultural delegates to Leeds for the Museums Association conference. Day two is another packed programme, including three sessions featuring our staff and partners: - Rob Freeman, Carys Deacon, and Dr. Kit Heyam will discuss the community-led approach we to took to reveal the hidden stories of gender at 12.40pm. This will explore our Forgotten Battles exhibition, which is only open until the end of November. - Matthew Wood, Natasha Bennett and Gurinder Singh Mann of the Sikh Museum Initiative will give a tour and discuss our project to incorporate Sikh armour in 3D into our displays, taking place in our Asian & African Gallery at 1.50pm - Nat Edwards will be chairing a panel discussion on securing the future of museums at 5.10pm taking place in New Dock Hall. #Museums2024 Image of our Forgotten Battles exhibition

Today we unveiled our new Ukrainian Armour display. This armour has been decorated with religious iconography as part of the Art Armor programme. Really moving to hear from Olga Callaghan from the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain. The display is here thanks to a loan from NP Aerospace until November 2025 so if you can, do come see..

Have you seen our latest display? It features ornately decorated Ukrainian body armours which show bullet damage from combat. Thankfully, they saved the lives of their wearers. The exhibition is open until April 2025. https://lnkd.in/eKbWRryC

As we get ready to welcome everyone for the Museums Association annual conference this week at the Armouries in Leeds, our Director General Nat Edwards outlines why the real joy of museums is in bringing communities together around shared stories. https://lnkd.in/eNwQ_Apq Image courtesy of Ina Harris