Museum of Oxford drops entry fees for locals

The Museum of Oxford has dropped entry fees for local residents following public criticism, a drop in visitor numbers and reduced donations.

Oxford City Council decided to introduce entry fees to the museum in October 2025, with a £4 per visitor charge being implemented in January this year.

But this has been overturned, with Oxford City Council Cabinet agreeing to pilot free entry to the museum for Oxford residents for three months from January 2027.

On 21 October, a new business plan for the Museum of Oxford was presented to the council cabinet. Council leader Susan Brown, who is in charge of the city’s culture brief, presented the plan, which included the following:

• Pilot free admission to the Museum of Oxford for Oxford City residents from 4 January to 31 March 2027, on proof of residency.
• Approval in principle of continued free admission to the Museum of Oxford for Oxford City residents from 1 April 2027, subject to the necessary budget provision being approved through the council's 2027/28 budget-setting process.
• Launch of a Friends, Patrons and Corporate Sponsorship scheme.
• Relaunch of an Adopt an Object scheme. 

After entry charges were introduced last October, local resident Avril Alexander launched the petition calling for the museum to stay free, which resulted in the Save Our Museum campaign, organised by a group of local people who used the museum. The petition attracted more than 2,700 signatures. 

Through Freedom of Information requests, the Save Our Museum campaign revealed detailed information about the Museum of Oxford’s donations and budgets. 

The campaign organised protests before council meetings in which the museum was due to be discussed, and mobilised local people to leave supportive messages for the museum on the final day before fees were introduced.

The number of local people who signed the petition meant the issue of entry fees was put on the agenda of a full council meeting on 23 March. 

Councillors from all the opposition parties – Greens, Lib Dems and Independent Oxford Alliance – supported a return to free entry for Oxford residents. Alexander also addressed the meeting (full speech here). 

The council cabinet agreed to relook at options for making the museum more accessible. 

In May, the councillor who had spearheaded the introduction of charging, Alex Hollingsworth, lost his seat to the Greens in the local elections. 

This led to the new business plan for the museum being proposed on 21 October. 

“The council made a massive mistake in introducing entry fees to a small local museum in a city full of world-renowned free ones," Alexander said. "We’re glad that Oxford residents’ voices have been heard and those fees are now being scrapped – hopefully for good.

“However, there is some devil in the detail. The business plan lists a range of new fundraising initiatives but doesn’t allocate any additional capacity for staff, which seems unrealistic. We urge the council to commit to covering the full costs of the museum, so that staff can focus on rebuilding goodwill, footfall and donations. We hope to see a continuation and strengthening of what the museum does best: telling the many stories of Oxford and its diverse communities, and engaging local residents in discovering more about our history.”

Councillor leader Brown said: “The Museum of Oxford is a beloved space for many people and we want that it is able to have a financially stable future. However, we also wanted to make the museum free for local Oxford residents as soon as we were able to do so. 

“We think this business plan balances these two objectives. The council is proud to provide considerable financial support for the museum each year. We need to explore additional sources of income to secure the museum’s future in telling the story of Oxford and its residents.  

"The updated business plan proposes increased opportunities for residents to visit the museum free of charge, alongside new ways for individuals, communities and businesses to support its future. By broadening the museum's sources of funding, we can continue investing in learning, community engagement and the preservation of Oxford's heritage while maintaining the council's commitment to supporting the museum." 

Save Our Museum’s full analysis of the Business Plan can be found here.