Local Partners
GLAM (Gardens Libraries and Museums)
The University has world leading Gardens, Libraries and Museums.
The Natural History Museum is home to several opportunities to engage people with your research. The Museum is host to ‘Lates.’ Ideal for attracting an adult audience these Friday evenings allow people to explore the museum after normal hours. Inside this beautiful building there is a chance for the public to meet university researchers. Contact Chris Jarvis to find out more.
The Natural History Museum plays host to Oxford’s own Christmas Lectures. If you have a great idea for one of these contact Sarah Lloyd.
March is the date for Super Science Saturday. These Saturday science festivals are themed, but the organizer is open to creative interpretation of these themes. March 2023 will be themed on The Origins of Life. Do you have the creativity to link this to your research? We once got cancer cell biochemistry into an event themed on Oceans (via GFP and jellyfish!). Contact Carly Smith-Huggins.
The Museum for the History of Science is another beautiful museum in Central Oxford. Do you have something you could say in that space? Contact Christopher Parkin.
The Bodleian can work with researchers and their collections can connect to any topic in human history. Recent work includes the collaboration with the Department of Psychology titled ‘The Anatomy of Melancholy’ and a joint project with Paediatrics and the History of Science Museum called ‘Alice in Typhoidland’. Contact the Bodleian directly to find out more.
Science Oxford
Science Oxford (Part of the Oxford Trust) has a mission to inspire young people about Science Technology Engineering and Maths. Homed at a beautiful new site off Quarry Road in Headington they have opportunities to get you talking to family and school audiences. The Science Oxford Centre is open every Saturday as well as some holiday weekdays and they would love to be able to run a Live Lab activity on as many of those days as possible.
The Live Lab is a space designed to be used by visiting researchers to deliver 10 to 20-minute drop-in hands-on activities or demonstrations linked to your research to family visitors. Science Oxford can provide a ‘demo bench’ with drawers of equipment for researchers to use. The space has a fridge and freezer as well as two sinks and two display screens on either side. If you already have hands-on activities or demos that were designed for use at a festival or community event, then this is another accessible way to reuse them for public engagement goals.
Less than 30% of visiting parents say they have a science-related job and 60% say they do not normally seek out science activities to do in their leisure time. Currently 23% of families visiting Science Oxford are repeat visitors, so Live Lab activities really add value for them.
Visitors are parents and children aged 12 and below. If you have an idea for a science festival stand or have one already from a previous event this is the event for you. Science Oxford has 2-hour slots – 1000-1200, 1230-1430, and 1500-1700. Each of these slots attracts 45 people. In relaxed environment, you can explore your science in slightly longer form than at most festivals. You may book multiple slots in a day There are indoor and outdoor spaces.
If you need any more information about Live Lab opportunities, contact Science Oxford. You can visit the Live Lab space and Science Oxford can provide free support and training for Live Lab activities if required.
Science Oxford can also help with work experience. Would you like to give young people an experience of life in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Maths)? If you could not commit to a week? Or feel you could not have under 18s in the lab spaces? Science Oxford runs work experience programmes and you may be able to host for just one day. Or you could contribute to online sessions. Or you could take part in workshops and seminars at Science Oxford. The sessions run in July each year with students selected in May. Contact Science Oxford to take part.