Exploring Bradford’s unique National Lottery funded museum dedicated to Peace
22nd September 2025
The Peace Museum, in Saltaire, Bradford, is one of a kind. There are an estimated 2,500 museums across the UK but only one museum is entirely about peace. It gives Bradford, the UK 2025 City of Culture something incredibly special.
Summer 2025 saw the museum pass one year at their new location housed within Salt Mills. The mill is the centrepiece of Saltaire village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Shipley on the outskirts of Bradford. Visitor numbers have hugely increased in large part thanks to National Lottery players – the museum moved here after a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
“We're an independent museum and charity, since 1994,” explains Dr Áine McKenny at the museum.
How did the idea for a Peace Museum come about?
“In 1992, they had a conference on the theme of museums in Bradford. One of the outcomes from that conference was to set up a peace museum. There hadn't been one in the UK.”
It’s worth reflecting on the museum’s uniqueness – as well as considering how many good causes are peace related. You may live near a peace garden or pass by a peace memorial, you might be part of a peace project or a member of a peace group or campaign. Since The National Lottery began, nearly 1,000 good cause grants have gone to peace-themed projects and places all over the UK.
“A four-year project funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund got us here,” says Áine . “Renovating took time as the space had not been used since it was an active mill.”
“Peace means different things to different people,” Dr Áine says. “So, we try to be open with our interpretation of ‘peace.’ We have a wide range of objects, placards, campaign materials, personal documents, government documents, different things that tell individual stories of peace.”
The museum’s space is full of objects, and knowledge, moving stories and some fun interactivity. For instance, a small selection from over 200 banners held at the museum, hang from the ceiling to stunning visual effect.
What’s on display is ever-changing. This is partly due to some temporary displays – for instance, summer 2025 saw a focus on the 1980s peace encampment led by women at Greenham Common, Berkshire, an exhibition funded by Arts Council England.
Then there’s the rotation of the museum’s permanent collection. Dr Áine says people donate new items and knowledge, all the time, and money - being a charity the museum appreciates donations of all kinds.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund has funded the permanent exhibition. Áine sums it up, “We have on display around 160 objects at any one time – when you think about our 16,000 strong collection that is a fraction.”
It’s 10% of what the museum holds – incredible as there is so much to see, read and hear.
“We have symbols of peace. We have movements and moments. We have responses to conflict. Some short films. And a more contemporary section about peace activism today and the things that impact that.”
Positive impacts on the museum and visitors, are evident from The National Lottery funding. Numbers are way up.
“In our old site, the busiest year we ever had was 3,000 people. On average, ten visitors would be a busy day for us. Here at Salts Mill in our new space we've had 40,000 visitors since we opened in August of 2024. We're averaging 250 visitors a day.”
Perhaps helped by Bradford’s 2025 UK City of Culture status, but where else will have seen such a leap in visitor numbers?
“It's been a massive increase,” Áine confirms. “In doing our surveys with visitors, we found that 60% of those people had never heard of us before.”
Great point – had you heard of The Peace Museum? And why only one when there are about 250 war museums.
“We're engaging with a lot more people. Without that support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, these histories and legacies wouldn't be shown. And we’re hearing a lot from visitors that we’re needed now more than ever.”
Áine notes the feedback of visiting families. There’s lots of fun interactivity: badge making, origami, crane making, banner and placard making.
And there’s deeper responses as Áine shares, “People are seeing protests out in the world for different subjects, campaigns. Families bring their children here to give them more context, to help explain. And, potentially, inspiring future peacemakers.”
Why should people visit and support the museum?
Áine sums up the significance: “People have always fought or had disagreements. How that's happening is changing and evolving. What our collection shows is that throughout history, people always turn up for peace, always advocate for alternatives to violence. It’s a hopeful message.”
