Statistical data set

Museums and galleries monthly visits

Monthly provisional statistics on the number of visits to the DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries are published here every quarter.

Published 1 March 2013
Last updated 23 April 2020 — see all updates
From:
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport

Museums and galleries visitor figures - January to March 2020

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 476KB

Museum and galleries visitor figures - January to March 2020

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  • Last update: 23 April 2020
  • Next update: August 2020
  • Geographic coverage: England
  • Frequency of release: Quarterly

Summary

  • Between January and March 2020, there were a total of 8.9 million visits to the DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries.

  • When visits to the Geffrye Museum are excluded, the total number of visits to the DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries in the first quarter of 2020 decreased by 23.8% compared to the same period the previous year.

  • Visitor numbers for January and February were broadly in line with those seen for the previous three years, however the March figures were affected by the closure in mid-March as part of Covid-19 control measures and hence are lower compared to previous years.

About

This release provides information about visits to DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries in England. Following the change from monthly to quarterly publication, monthly visitor figures will still be available but published on a quarterly basis.

The statistical series provides information on the visits to DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries in England and is subject to seasonal fluctuations. The general trend is for visits to be higher during school holidays. Some temporary exhibitions attract large numbers of visits and there may also be occasions when all or part of a museum or gallery is closed for refurbishment, both affecting the visitor numbers.

Data collection methods vary between institutions, and each uses a method appropriate to its situation. All data is collected according to the P I guidance (MS Word Document, 66.6KB).

Figures may be subject to revision. Any amendments will be published on this website in accordance with the Department’s revision statement, available in our compliance statement.

Note on visits to the Geffrye Museum

The Geffrye Museum closed on 7 January 2018 to commence its two year capital refurbishment project but continues to host ticketed events which the museum records as visitor numbers. The latest figures provided by the museum are considerably lower than the pre-closure visitor figures.

The UK Statistics Authority

This release is published in accordance with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics (2009) produced by the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA). The UKSA has the overall objective of promoting and safeguarding the production and publication of official statistics that serve the public good. It monitors and reports on all official statistics, and promotes good practice in this area.

Pre-release access

The Pre-release access list (MS Word Document, 14.1KB) contains a list of ministers and officials who have received privileged early access to this release of Museum and Gallery monthly visit figures. In line with best practice, the list has been kept to a minimum and those given access for briefing purposes had a maximum of 24 hours.

Contact

Responsible statistician: Rachel Moyce

For any queries please contact evidence@culture.gov.uk.

Published 1 March 2013
Last updated 23 April 2020 + show all updates

  1. Publication of DCMS sponsored museum visitor figures January to March 2020

  2. Publishing monthly visitor figures for October to December 2019.

  3. We have updated this series to include visitor figures up to September 2019

  4. Updated with visitor figures up to June 2019

  5. Updated with visitor figures for January, February and March 2019

  6. Monthly museum and galleries visits have been updated with December 2018 data.

  7. Updated with visitor figures up to November 2018.

  8. Updated with visitor figures for October 2018.

  9. Updated with visitor figures for September 2018.

  10. Updated with visitor numbers for August 2018

  11. Updated with visitor figures for July 2018

  12. Updated with monthly visit figures for June 2018

  13. Updated with the latest visitor numbers for May 2018

  14. Updated with visitor figures for April 2018.

  15. Updated with visitor figures for February 2018.

  16. An error was identified in the published figures for the National Musuems Liverpool whereby one of the sites were omittied from the total figure. A revision has now been made to both the National Museums Liverpool and the total DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries figures.

  17. Updated with the latest visitor figures for January 2018.

  18. Updated with December 2017 visitor figures.

  19. Updated with visitor figures for November 2017.

  20. Updated with visitor figures for October 2017.

  21. Updated with monthly visit figures for September 2017.

  22. Updated with August 2017 data.

  23. Updated with July 2017 monthly visits.

  24. Latest statistics published.

  25. Updated with latest figures for May 2017

  26. Updated with latest figures for April 2017

  27. Updated with the latest statistics for March 2017

  28. Monthly release and new CSV format

  29. Updated statistics.

  30. Updated statistics.

  31. New statistics.

  32. Updated statistics.

  33. Updated statistics for July 2016.

  34. Updated statistics - June 2016.

  35. Updated statistics - May 2016.

  36. Updated figures.

  37. Updated figures.

  38. Updated statistics.

  39. Updated statistics (January 2016).

  40. December 2016 figures.

  41. Revised on 15th January 2016.

  42. Updated data.

  43. Updated statistics.

  44. Updated statistics

  45. Updated statistics

  46. Updated statistics

  47. Updated statistics

  48. Updated statistics

  49. Updated statistics

  50. Updated statistics

  51. Updated monthly museums and galleries visitor figures

  52. Monthly museum figures updated

  53. Publication of sponsored museum and gallery visits November 2014

  54. Publication of sponsored museum and gallery visits for October 2014

  55. Publication of September 2014 visit figures for sponsored museums and galleries

  56. Publication of sponsored museums and galleries visit figures for August 2014

  57. Publication of sponsored museum and gallery visit figures for June 2014

  58. Publication of museums and galleries monthly visits for May 2014

  59. Publication of new dataset for April 2014

  60. December data added

  61. Updated monthly figures to include October 2013

  62. Added pre-release access list

  63. updated monthly figures to include August 2013

  64. Updated summary and added September's report.

  65. Updated statistics

  66. Updated to include month on month and year on year comparisons.

  67. Latest figures added

  68. First published.

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