Sensory Friendly Days will be held on Tuesday 10 August and Tuesday 19 October, prioritising the needs of visitors living with autism spectrum conditions, sensory processing differences or profound and multiple learning disabilities.
Closing to the general public enables the venue to guarantee a less crowded experience, while support from the People’s Postcode Lottery means free access to Night Fever: Designing Club Culture, the museum’s major exhibition, is also included.
Adapted opening times and flexible visiting options will further ensure visitors can enjoy the Sensory Friendly Days on a schedule that works for them.
“We have seen first-hand how much joy our sensory-friendly sessions bring to people’s lives since V&A Dundee opened in 2018, but this is the first time we will run these sessions for a full day while the museum is closed,” explains Peter Nurick, communities producer at V&A Dundee.
“Being able to use the museum in different ways means we can adapt the exhibitions to make them even more comfortable and enjoyable for people who may otherwise have struggled to visit us.”
Access to the museum’s Quiet Room will be available throughout each day, with changes also able to be made to sound and light levels throughout the site in order to avoid unnecessary stress or overstimulation.
Ear defenders and new sensory backpacks, co-developed by V&A Dundee and PAMIS, will be among other items offered to visitors to maximise their enjoyment of their visit.
“It is vital that we understand the distinctive needs of people who are often excluded from society. By focusing on these needs, and working to remove barriers in the lives of people with profound and multiple learning disabilities, we can help them to achieve equal access to society,” says PAMIS volunteer Rachel Persheyeva.
“The sensory friendly backpacks have been carefully designed, incorporating our key learnings on vision, hearing, and other senses. This makes them an effective tool in helping people with their learning and communication needs.”
More information on Sensory Friendly Days at V&A Dundee can be found here.
