Admissions Policy

Your enjoyment, and the enjoyment of all our visitors, is very important to us. Please find information below to help plan your day.

Conditions of Entry

Please take care of your own health and safety and our collections during your visit. To ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone, please do not:

  • Touch objects on open display
  • Ignore alarms, signs, barriers or directions given by staff
  • Leave personal property unattended
  • Eat and drink other than in designated areas
  • Bring any restricted item (see below) into the Museum
  • Fundraise, demonstrate or distribute campaigning material without prior agreement (please contact us in writing)
  • Ride bicycles, scooters or any other wheeled item in our hangars. We have a secure scooter rack on site so if you have your scooter when you arrive please ask one of the Visitor Experience Assistants who will provide you with a padlock so you can secure your scooter while you visit the Musuem. Bicycle Racks are available on site.

We welcome all visitors at the RAF Museum. Children aged 11+ are welcome to visit unaccompanied provided that parents/carers/guardians are confident that their children are able to pass over an emergency contact number should Museum staff require it. We are unable to support visits by under 11 year olds without an accompanying person aged 16+.

Age restrictions may apply for particular experiences.

For learning groups, separate advice and guidance on supervision of children is available here.
 
Please note that the Museum regularly undertakes a programme of maintenance and conservation, so some exhibits or Hangars may be temporarily inaccessible. If you are visiting us to see something specific, please contact us in advance to ensure it that it is on display and available for public viewing.

Animals, other than Assistance Dogs accompanying their owners, are not allowed inside any building.

Please only use our designated outdoor smoking areas (including electronic cigarettes).

Visitors are permitted to use hand-held cameras within the Museum for private and non-commercial purposes, but must not make any recording or take any photograph of any person without the permission of that person.

Non-private or commercial use of cameras/recording devices, and the use of tripods or lighting, is only allowed by prior arrangement. Please contact our Commercial Events team.

We will always let you know if official filming or photography is taking place in the Museum during your visit.

Please look after your personal property during your visit. Any property left unattended may be removed. If you lose any item during your visit, please speak to a member of staff.

A cloakroom with lockers (£1 refundable) is available in Hangar 1 as well as a secure buggy park. These are not staffed, and are used at your own risk.

  • Alcohol may only be consumed, if purchased on site, in a designated area
  • Clothing with offensive signage or logos
  • Animals, with exception of Assistance Dogs
  • Potentially dangerous items such as fireworks or knives. Knives which are carried for religious or cultural observance (such as the Kirpan) are normally exempt
  • Any clothing or item worn deliberately to obscure the face, but with the exception of items worn for religious or cultural observance such as a Niqab or Burkha

We will sometimes conduct bag searches on arrival. The searches look for restricted items and any other material that might be considered a risk to our collection, or to the health and safety and enjoyment of our visitors.

Any items found will be removed at the bag-searching point will be recorded and returned on departure. If our staff find anything they consider to be illegal, they will confiscate it and contact the Police. 

There is a Duty Manager on site whenever we are open to the public, to ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable visit.

All our staff and volunteers are identifiable from their badges and passes. 

If our team think you may be causing unreasonable offence to other visitors, or are endangering yourself, others, our property or our collections, they will ask you to stop. Our staff have the authority to escort you from the Museum premises if necessary.

We will not tolerate abuse or violence towards any visitor, contractor, volunteer or staff member, whether by telephone, email, or onsite.

CCTV is in use throughout the Museum. Images are recorded for the purpose of public safety and crime prevention, in line with Data Protection legislation.

Refunds will be offered if the Museum has had to close, cancel events or experiences. If you are unable to visit the Museum or attend an event, please contact the Museum at least 24 hours before your planned arrival to reschedule for a later date. If your visit cannot be rescheduled, you may at the discretion of the Museum be offered a refund.
Please be aware that the refund process may take up to 30 days to complete.