Poole Museum developed a sensory trail following the success of its regular baby and toddler group, Museum Music and Mime, which focuses on language development for infants and is based on a sensory approach linked to our collections.

Developed in-house, the sensory trail starts with a red lunch box containing a paper trail, stickers and a number of multisensory items. It is based on key exhibits around the museum and visitors are invited to listen, touch or smell objects on display. Objects in the box, for example, tea bags are linked with exhibits, such as tea sets.   

During its development of the trail, the museum thought about different communication methods. It decided to use easily recognisable symbols to illustrate the trail, such as a picture of an ear if visitors were meant to be listening. These symbols appear within the museum displays and on the paper trail.

Although the trail’s target audience is children, it also contains a range of sensory activities for all visitors, including those with sensory impairments and learning disabilities. The next step is to create additional trail sheets for these groups.

Trudie Cole, the learning and access manager at Poole Borough Council’s museum service