We'll come to you

We are delighted to come out to organisations, care homes, youth clubs, youth organisations, community groups and schools to present and explore the work and worlds of Frederic Leighton and Linley Sambourne if you are unable to Come to Us.  

Our outreach programmes offer the chance to experience Leighton House and Sambourne House through our portfolio of workshops, performances and talks delivered by our subject experts and skilled creatives, and through our participation in events and celebrations elsewhere.   Our Learning and Outreach programmes are  generously supported by the Banham Foundation.

Meet the Museums at Kensington Central Library

Leighton House and Sambourne House are delighted to team up with Kensington Central Library to offer a series of free workshops and talks. Reserve your place via RBKC Libraries Eventbrite. 

Stitching Circle, Thursdays, 1-2:30pm: 1 May, 5 June, 3 July 2025 

Children’s Library, Ground Floor, Kensington Central Library, 12 Phillimore Walk, London W8 7RX 

Spend a relaxing session stitching and chatting with fellow embroidery enthusiasts.  Bring your own project or make use of the materials provided. Sessions are free and open to everyone - even if you've never picked up a needle before! Hot drinks provided. 

Object Handling, Thursdays, 1-2:00pm: 15 May, 17 July 2025 

Local Studies, First Floor, Kensington Central Library, 12 Phillimore Walk, London W8 7RX 

Join the Leighton House and Sambourne House museum team for a series of Object Handling sessions exploring extraordinary objects from the museums’ collections. This is a relaxed opportunity to discover what museum objects can tell us about the past.  

Participants (16+) are also invited to bring along their own historical objects (this could be something decades or centuries old, but it must be easy to carry and display on a small table).   

Equally, feel free to come along without an object, discover what others have brought and join in the conversation! 

Case Study: The Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition

The Royal Society annual Summer Science Exhibition showcases nine flagship exhibits, and runs a packed programme of talks, hands-on activities and drop-in workshops, across six days of exploration and discovery.  Leighton House was invited to participate in July 2023, following the success of our learning programme 'Exploring Sound and Creating Music, which was funded by a Places of Science grant from the Royal Society. 

Acclaimed musician and composer, Maya Youssef  gave pop up live performances playing the qanun, alongside our science expert Karen Hodgetts, who explored the science of sound and birdsong through fun, practical workshops.  

Case study: Our Garden

Our Garden, a co-created community textile work made with artist Nour Hage was on display at Kensington Central Library from November 2024 - March 2025, offering a point of inspiration for free guided Stitching Circles, led by three of the original co-creators. 

The textile piece was produced by British-Lebanese artist Nour Hage together with eight co-creators from the local community over five workshops held at Leighton House in January 2023. Taking inspiration from Leighton’s collection, in particular the tiles in the Arab Hall and staircase hall, and antique textiles on display throughout the house, the eight co-creators were asked to create a symbol in embroidery which had personal significance for them. 

Case Study: Primary Care Network event

The Primary Care Network (PCN) delivered a Community Mental Health and Wellbeing event at Earls Court Wellbeing Centre in March 2025. It was wonderful to see so many organisations come together to provide essential services, advice and support to the community. From health checks to wellbeing activities, the event was designed to make a real impact and the feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive. Museums made new connections with other organisations as well as having the opportunity to signpost Leighton House to attendees – particularly free to access spaces such as the garden, free / low cost programming such as neighbourhood walks, stitching circles and Family Fun, and volunteering opportunities. Vouchers for free admission were also distributed and well-received, particularly by the large number of attendees who had lived in the area for many years but never visited Leighton House. The event is the starting point for a developing partnership with Neighbourhood Navigators, with Museums ‘on prescription’. 

Case Study: Avondale Park Primary School

Avondale Park Primary School invited Leighton House to join their Spring term careers week, visiting Year 1 to talk about a career as an artist and in the creative industries. The team delivered a workshop presentation and activity – twice! - which the teacher described as perfectly pitched and paced, creative, fun and accessible for all learners. The love of the children for art was very clear, and they were a joy to work with – respectful, attentive and curious.

Case Study: Fulham Palace Craft Fair

Leighton House was invited to participate in Fulham Palace’s Spring Craft Fair. We had previously participated in a similar event last August. The team presented a collage card making workshop and the opportunity for children to try on Victorian hats, scarves, ties and gloves and have their adult take a photo. Children were very much engaged in both activities. We were one of 8 small museums from across London who were represented and were able to reach an entirely new audience; many visitors had never heard of our museums before and if they had, were unaware that we had children’s workshops.