Wheal Martyn China Clay Museum
Essential Information
Children £5.50
Family saver ticket (2 adults and 2 children) £28.00
Family saver ticket (2 adults and 4 children) £34.00
Carers are permitted free entry into the museum.
Wheal Martyn is currently still closed, but we are implementing COVID safe measures to enable us to open in early July.
Opening times will be 10:00 to 17:00 Sunday to Thursday
We will be asking that all visitors to Wheal Martyn now pre-book timed arrival slots online. This will ensure social distancing guidelines can be maintained. Once you arrive, you can stay as long as you like, within our opening hours.
This ticket booking function will become available shortly and our reopening date will be announced when we are confident our booking system is ready.
Arriving
Wheal Martyn has a large car park, with designated disabled parking spots. From the car park, there is level access to the main entrance via a portable ramp. From here, there is level access to the dining hall, atrium gallery, information and ticket desk, an indoor unisex toilet, and the ladies or mens outdoor accessible toilets. There is level access to both floors of the museum from here too. From the car park, there is level access to the nature trail picnic area.
Facilities available
The unisex toilet in the atrium is a fully accessible Changing Places toilet; there are emergency pull cords, low level basins and a low level hand drier.
There is a mens outside accessible toilet, with a permanent ramp to access it.
The ladies outside accessible toilet is situated from the main entrance, with a permanent ramp to access. There are also baby changing facilities provided next to the basins.
Dogs on leads are welcome throughout the site.
Places to eat
There’s level access from the main entrance to the dining area, and there are no steps to the tables. The menu is in a large print, and has options for vegetarians, celiacs, those who are lactose intolerant, low fat, high fibre, and vegan diets. The coffee shop and cafe has tables that are accessible for wheelchair users.
The cafe will be open 10:30 to 16:00 Sunday to Thursday.
Gallery
Accessibility notes
Wheal Martyn is a historic site and some areas have limited access by nature. However, the Discovery Centre, shop and café are fully accessible and every effort has been made to make as many areas of the wider site as accessible as possible.
Please note that:
BSL clips
You can hire a tablet to use while you explore Wheal Martyn in British Sign Language (BSL). Alternatively, view it on your own device here.
Easy read guide
You can ask reception for a free easy read guide to borrow during your visit, or download your own copy here.
Quiet spaces
If you need to go somewhere quiet for any reason during your visit, then you can go to our quiet space. Follow signs for the conference room. When you reach the building, it is the first door you come to and the quiet space is just inside, near the entrance. Please ask a member of staff if you require any further assistance.
Sensory bags
Explore Wheal Martyn with one of our sensory bags, which are designed especially for people with autism and learning difficulties.
What there is inside.
Indoor interactive displays telling the story of the men, women and children who lived, worked and played in the shadow of the china clay tips. Explore the indoor Discovery Centre and follow a virtual tour into a working clay pit with family friendly wheelchair accessible interactive exhibits, film footage, voice recordings, and a making and drawing area.
What there is outside.
The museum in the linhay/china clay dry (lower level) has level access via a permanent ramp.
Outside there are lots of things tosee and explore such as the Crib Huts, Settling Tanks and Wagon Huts.
Wheal Martyn is home to beautiful vintage vehicles, including a 1934 ERF lorry and 1916 Peerless lorry, used in World War One before coming to Cornwall.
To avoid steps, the lower and upper levels of the museum can be accessed separately. The upper level has level access from the historic trail.
There is a designated walking trail, which may not be suitable for the less able bodied; there are numerous steps with parts of it uneven with a loose surface, making it inaccessible for wheelchair users.
The nature trail picnic area is accessed from the car park. This is level, with a permanent ramp. There is a steep gradient on the trail to the picnic area.
