Opening new facilities
Oorlogsmuseum Overloon opens new facilities for schools and families
Oorlogsmuseum Overloon continues to renew its exhibitions, but also works just as hard behind the scenes to provide optimal facilities for visitors. This spring, the museum is taking an important step: on April 1st, it will open — alongside two new rooms for school groups — a fully accessible Changing Places Toilet. This is a specially adapted toilet with (lying) changing facilities for people with severe disabilities and has been made possible in part thanks to Stichting het Gehandicapte Kind and participants of the VriendenLoterij.
More space for a growing number of school groups
For years, the number of school groups visiting the museum has been increasing. A visit begins with a joint introduction about the Second World War, after which students enter the museum in groups of fifteen with a guide. However, the existing waiting areas were becoming increasingly crowded. Thanks to the addition of two new rooms, on top of the three existing ones, the museum can once again welcome all groups smoothly. Each room can accommodate around sixty students — exactly what is needed to manage busier periods.
A museum where all children are welcome
In addition to school groups, many families visit the museum. However, for families with a child or other family member with severe multiple disabilities, a visit was not always feasible. They require special changing facilities with a hoist: Changing Places Toilets. These toilets — already standard in countries such as the United Kingdom, where there are around 2,700 — provide the necessary support to change children and adults with dignity, but are still rarely found in the Netherlands. Oorlogsmuseum Overloon wanted to change that.
Mother Lotte: “Our son Mees (5.5 years old) has a developmental delay, which means he cannot do certain things, including speaking and going to the toilet independently. We therefore have to change him in the most unusual and challenging places, such as on dirty floors. That is far from ideal. We want Mees to enjoy outings just like other children, and he is greatly stimulated by new environments, so we love going out. Thanks to the Changing Places Toilet, we can now go out as a family with far fewer worries.”
Realised in collaboration
With the help of Stichting het Gehandicapte Kind and participants of the VriendenLoterij, the museum has realised a fully equipped Changing Places Toilet, including a hoist and other essential facilities. In doing so, Oorlogsmuseum Overloon joins a growing group of cultural institutions — including the Efteling, which opened a similar facility at the end of March.
For the furnishing of the two new rooms, the museum also received support from the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) and the museum’s Friends. Thanks to this joint effort, Oorlogsmuseum Overloon is ready from this spring onwards to welcome both school groups and families even better.
