“A multimillion pound investment turned the former Museum of Children into a world class space for children to develop, play and learn.”

After a £30 million investment the newly opened Young V&A has been designed and build FOR children. Every detail, small and large answers to the practical needs, imagination, play, learning, physical and mental well-being of the under 15s. The most up to date research about childhood development and learning are represented in the fabric, design and fit of the building. Click here to find out more about what they did and how they did it.

Stuff that went really well. What is it like to visit the Young V&A with a baby? Many aspects are world class and meet the needs of babies and their adults beautifully. Mini Museum is a specially designated space for the under 3s which incorporates objects from the museum’s collection alongside an amazing array of sensory materials. Here lights, colours and textures provide an opportunity for babies to explore and discover. There is an enormous buggy park and lots of comfortable places to sit and feed your baby. A reading room on the lower-ground floor is a designated quiet space away from the noise and stimulation of the main museum floors. This is a particularly calm space for baby feeding. For adults who need the loo while looking after a baby there is 1 cubical in the ladies big enough to accommodate a buggy. A small but crucial detail many public buildings miss. Without this, lone parents can’t use the toilet privately, safely or easily. By the cafe a microwave and baby bottle warmer are freely accessible. If your baby falls asleep there is plenty in the museum to entertain you, although this is very much a child / baby focused museum.

Unfortunate Drawbacks. There are, however a small, but surprising, number of drawbacks to taking your baby to Young V&A. Firstly, there is only 1 lift and during our visit there was a queue of parents with prams waiting to use it. We waited for 20 minutes. There are two wall mounted baby changing tables in the ladies toilet and I am told it was the same in the gents. The hand dryers are loud and very near the changing tables which caused some shock and upset mid-change. There is no option to change a nappy in private and the long toilet queue fights for space with nappy changes in progress. Obstacles which are out of the control of the museum include the nearest tube station. Bethnal Green does not have step free access. While the architecture of the museum building causes the noise of play to amplify and echo around the central atrium area. During school holidays we queued for 40 minutes to enter the building. Waiting outside on an October day in London is cold and boring with no seating or facilities. There are no timed tickets or pre-booking so if you have the choice, take your baby on work days in term time.

Missed opportunities. No emergency nappies or wipes, for free or on sale. This surprised us. The British Museum has a vending machine for nappies and wipes. The Great North Museum: Hancock provides free emergency nappies, while the William Morris Gallery goes as far as providing free emergency clothes for babies and toddlers who have had an accident. The cafe doesn’t sell baby food, which could also be a quick fix.