MIGRATION MUSEUM PROJECT

What MIGRATION MUSEUM PROJECT does

The Migration Museum Project is a UK registered charity (No. 1153774) whose stated mission is to build Britain's first permanent museum dedicated to migration, scheduled to open in the City of London in 2028. It curates exhibitions, learning workshops, walking tours, podcasts, and community engagement programmes serving schools, families, heritage professionals, and the general public. Over its five-year presence at its former Lewisham venue the organisation reported more than 200,000 visitors and an estimated £2.1M of local economic impact, alongside engagement of 38,000+ young people through its learning programme and 1,000+ professionals through its Migration Network.

Its core 'product' is a library of curated migration stories, oral histories, and exhibition content delivered through physical exhibitions, educational programmes, walking tours, and digital channels. It previously operated a physical retail shop that has transitioned to an online-only offer following the March 2025 closure of the Lewisham venue, leaving the organisation without a permanent site in the interim. Campaign work extends the proposition beyond the venue: the Football Moves People campaign reached a stated 10M+ audience.

The business model is philanthropic rather than commercial. Income is generated through grants from major foundations (including Heritage Fund, Garfield Weston, Oak Foundation, Esmee Fairbairn, and Arts Council England), corporate partnership (Dominus), and public-sector support from the City of London for the planned permanent venue. Earned income comprises donations, learning workshops, walking tours, and online retail. The charity operates with a team of 18 and has won Cannes Lions and Museums and Heritage Awards.

Name

MIGRATION MUSEUM PROJECT

Legal name

Migration Museum Project

Website

https://migrationmuseum.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

A UK registered charity (No. 1153774) building Britain's first permanent migration museum in the City of London, scheduled to open in 2028. It runs exhibitions, learning workshops, walking tours, podcasts, and community engagement programmes for schools, families, and heritage professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Museum

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (712110), Museums (71211), Historical Sites (71212)

akta.pro primary industry

History Museums (THAJADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museum & Landmark Guided Tours (Skip-the-line/Docent-led) (THAJAAAC), Cultural Heritage & Historic District Tours (THAJAAAB)

Keywords

• Cultural heritage museum
• Migration exhibitions
• Educational learning programmes
• Community engagement events
• Museum walking tours

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: One-off gifts or regular monthly/quarterly/annual commitments from individual donors. Gift Aid reclaimable on UK taxpayer donations.
2. Learning workshops and walking tours: Fees charged for educational workshops and walking tours, with flexible pricing based on school circumstances. Delivers workshops for Upper Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 5, and talks for university students.
3. Retail shop: Award-winning shop selling unique gifts and art celebrating migration stories, featuring up-and-coming makers and brands. Previously operated in Lewisham Shopping Centre; now online only.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Migration Museum Project is a UK registered charity building Britain's first permanent museum dedicated to the history and impact of migration on British society, scheduled to open in the City of London in 2028. It delivers cultural and educational programmes including physical and touring exhibitions, online exhibitions, podcasts, an award-winning school learning programme, private walking tours, community curators programmes, the Migration Network for heritage professionals, and an online retail shop featuring migrant makers and brands.

Product overview

The Migration Museum Project is a charity building Britain's first permanent museum dedicated to migration, scheduled to open in the City of London in 2028. Their offering is a portfolio of public-facing cultural, educational, and digital programmes rather than a unified technology product. Core offerings include physical and touring exhibitions (Heart of the Nation, Community Curators), digital content (online exhibitions, Departures podcast, Migrants Mean Business podcast), educational services (Learning Programme, Teaching Migration History Toolkit), community networks (Migration Network, People's Panel), and retail (Migrant Makers Market online shop). They also offer walking tours and events programmes. The organization operates pop-up venues and partners with institutions across the UK while building toward their permanent home.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Heart of the Nation Exhibition A national touring and digital exhibition shining a light on the stories and experiences of people who have come to Britain to work in the NHS, marking the 75th anniversary of the NHS. Targeted at the general public, schools, and the heritage sector.
• Community Curators Programme A programme giving communities power over decision-making, exhibitions, and museum values, enabling better museums through community-led curation. Delivered with five partner institutions across the UK.
• Football Moves People Campaign A public campaign highlighting how migration shapes English football, using social media, out-of-home displays, and real-time graphics during the 2021 and 2024 men's Euros, reaching over 10 million people.
• Departures Podcast A podcast series exploring 400 years of emigration from Britain, hosted by Mukti Jain Campion, featuring conversations with researchers and people sharing their migration stories.
• Learning Programme Award-winning educational workshops and outreach programmes for young people, teachers, and schools (Upper Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 5) exploring personal migration stories, building empathy, and developing critical thinking and media literacy skills.
• Migration Network A knowledge-sharing network uniting museums, heritage organisations, charities, academics, and professionals across the UK to explore migration and its impact on society, engaging over 1,000 professionals.
• Online Exhibitions Digital exhibitions including '100 Images of Migration' gallery and 'Taking Care of Business: Migrant Entrepreneurs and the Making of Britain' available online for a global audience.
• Migrant Makers Market Online Shop Award-winning online shop featuring unique gifts and art celebrating stories of migration, showcasing up-and-coming makers, brands, and businesses. Every purchase supports the Migration Museum.
• Private Walking Tours Guided walking tours of London exploring migration stories woven into the city's streets, available for teams or groups via [email protected] or the website.
• Teaching Migration History Toolkit A practical guide co-produced with the British Library for teaching about migration in classrooms, combining primary sources with guidance on navigating complex topics for teachers.
• Co-created Community Engagement Toolkit An open-access resource supporting co-created community engagement projects, co-produced by the People's Panel and Migration Network members.
• Migrants Mean Business Event Series and Podcast An event series and podcast featuring conversations with Britain's most successful migrant business leaders, hosted by George Alagiah in association with Allianz Global Investors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Worked with over 38,000 young people through award-winning learning programme
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• DominusflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerShared vision and enabling partnership for the purpose-built permanent museum in the City of London, with 60 years rent and service charge free arrangement.
• City of LondonflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to house the permanent Migration Museum in the heart of the City of London, an area rich with the UK's most iconic migration stories.
• British LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTwo-year critical friendship resulting in co-produced Teaching Migration History Toolkit. Combines British Library primary sources with Migration Museum learning expertise.
• Hay FestivalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership to share personal migration stories of festival speakers including Julia Gillard, David Miliband, Kamila Shamsie, Liv Little, Tahmima Anam and Kirsty Lang.
• Whitechapel GalleryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration as part of Backyard Biennial: East arts festival with 40+ local partners across East London.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Tate Modern: Major London museum with extensive learning, community, and partnership programming that reaches diverse audiences. Comparable as a London cultural institution with deep learning programmes, community engagement, and award recognition — though focused on modern art.
• Museum of London: London's social history museum covering the city's development including migration waves. Comparable as a London heritage institution interpreting social history themes including migration, though broader in scope and not migration-specific.
• Imperial War Museum: Major London-based national museum covering conflict history including the experience of refugees and migration flows during wartime. Comparable as a publicly-funded UK museum addressing difficult social history themes and shaping national narratives, though broader in scope than the Migration Museum's specific focus.
• V&A East / Young V&A: Major UK museum institution with East London presence and museum learning expertise. Comparable as a museum delivering award-winning learning programmes for young people, though focused on design and material culture rather than migration history.

Regional players

• Whitechapel Gallery: East London gallery with extensive community programming and partnership with the Migration Museum on Backyard Biennial: East arts festival. Comparable as an East London cultural institution partnering on community-focused arts programming serving diverse local audiences.

Direct peers

• Jewish Museum London: London museum exploring Jewish history, identity, and migration experience in Britain. Highly comparable as a community-rooted cultural institution exploring migration narratives, persecution, and belonging in the UK, with similar educational programming and co-produced exhibition models.
• Tenement Museum (Lower East Side): New York museum telling immigrant and migrant stories through preserved buildings and personal narratives. Comparable as a migration-focused cultural institution using personal stories, community co-production, and walking tours to interpret immigrant experience — and often cited as a model for permanent migration museums.
• The Wiener Holocaust Library: UK institution documenting refugee and migration experience in the 20th century, particularly Jewish and other persecuted groups. Comparable as a heritage and educational institution focused on migration, displacement, and identity in a British context.
• National Holocaust Centre and Museum: UK charity-operated museum addressing persecution, refugees, and migration themes through education. Comparable as a charity-funded heritage institution focused on migration-adjacent narratives with strong learning programmes for schools — similar operating model to the Migration Museum.
• People's History Museum: Manchester-based national museum exploring democratic and social history including migrant communities' contributions. Comparable as a UK museum focused on underrepresented social narratives with strong learning programmes and community co-production approaches.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xbsky.app/profile/migrationmuseum.org
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCED3a2p5W4UnMogPxobU4ZA/videos
• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Migration-Museum-Project/206771642686858
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/migration-museum-uk
• Instagraminstagram.com/migrationmuseumuk
• TikToktiktok.com/@migrationmuseumuk

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MIGRATION MUSEUM PROJECT