Port Sunlight recognised as one of the best places in the UK for schools and education groups to visit

Port Sunlight in Wirral has long been a favourite destination for schools and learners to engage with the village’s unique heritage. Now its learning programme has been recognised with a prestigious Sandford Award, a national award recognising excellence in heritage education.

The Sandford Award is run by the Heritage Education Trust, who have been recognising excellence in the sector since 1978, establishing the award as one of the most respected and enduring benchmarks of quality in the heritage learning sector.

The learning programme offered by Port Sunlight Village Trust, the independent charity who looks after the village, is one of only four in the North West to be recognised with the award in this year’s round of awards.

The Heritage Education Trust highlighted how the “programme is well planned and superbly delivered across the village and in dedicated learning spaces by a professional team and supported by learning volunteers who bring their own areas of interests and expertise to the activities. This makes for an enjoyable and varied experience for learners.”

Charlene Davies, Learning and Audience Development Manager at Port Sunlight Village Trust, said: “To be recognised with the Sandford Award represents a huge amount of work our small team have invested into providing every single school and learner we welcome to Port Sunlight with a high quality, unforgettable experience. It means even more because the Sandford Award has been based on on-site assessments, and we’re so proud that our work shone through.

“Over the past few years, we’ve grown our learning offer to include a wide range of workshops and experiences spanning the national curriculum, building on Port Sunlight’s heritage, landscapes, people, art and links to science, engineering and design. Schools are now visiting us again and again because we work hard to make sure they are getting the most value from their experience.”

Port Sunlight Village Trust operates the award-winning Port Sunlight Museum alongside other visitor venues and public events, as well as caring for a large collection of objects from the village’s past and present, which forms the basis of the learning programme.

In 2025/2026, over 2,300 learners and 30 schools took in Port Sunlight’s formal learning programme.

Learners can visit Port Sunlight Museum and the Worker’s Cottage, embark on a guided walking tour, explore the interactive SoapWorks learning gallery, take a seat in the Victorian school room, as well as take part in a range of workshops from soap making to studying the census as history detectives. Bespoke experiences are also available, all with an aim to inspire creativity, curiosity and critical thinking.

One of the Trust’s recent developments of its learning programme is the expansion of the Victorian school room based in Port Sunlight’s original school as part of the Lyceum, which is increasingly popular with schools.

The Trust has also launched a School Transport Fund offering schools assistance with funding their coach travel, helping to alleviate the rising costs of transport which can create a barrier for schools to visit.

Port Sunlight also offers informal learning experiences throughout the year, including themed soap making, creative crafts and engaging self-guided trails, as well as family engagement activities as part of the the village’s large public events such as the Sugar & Spice Festival.

To find out more about Port Sunlight Village Trust’s learning programme, email learning@portsunlightvillage.com or visit portsunlightvillage.com/learning