Tyne and Wear Metro teams up with local museums and galleries for February half term event programme

This February half term museums and galleries across Tyneside have teamed up with Tyne and Wear Metro to offer families “good value, high-quality” days out.

Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums’ (TWAM) free ‘Ways to Play’ event programme, sponsored by Tyne and Wear Metro, covers the following venues in Newcastle:

• The Great North Museum: Hancock
• Laing Art Gallery
• Discovery Museum; at South Shields Museum & Art Gallery
• Wallsend’s Segedunum Roman Fort
• North Shields’ Stephenson Steam Railway
• Gateshead’s Shipley Art Gallery

Tyne and Wear Metro is TWAM’s official travel partner, with almost all of the nine museums and galleries they manage located close to Metro stations.

TWAM is encouraging people to use the Metro to travel to its venues, with particular emphasis on families. Up to three children aged 11 and under can travel for free on the Metro and the Shields Ferry with a fare-paying adult.

Clare Smith, learning and engagement manager at TWAM, said: “We’re committed to ensuring that all families can enjoy our museums and galleries for fun and educational days out and that the cost of visiting shouldn’t be a barrier.

“Whilst our venues are mostly free to visit and they are all free for under 16s, there are often hidden costs to a day out including transport and this new partnership with Tyne and Wear Metro helps us to offer a great value way to travel to our museums and galleries.

Huw Lewis, customer services director at Nexus said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with TWAM this half term. They have some fantastic local venues for families to enjoy and we can get visitors there quickly and affordably.

“When we launched our permanent price promise of Kids Go Free last year, we wanted to help families get back out and about on Metro at very low costs.

“Three children aged 11 and under can travel for free with a paying adult, all day, every day, and with so many activities on offer through Ways to Play at the museums, half term can be of great value and great fun.”