Free Event Family day out
Notting Hill Carnival’s Families & Children Day
Enjoy a cheerful Sunday inspired by the Notting Hill Carnival as we welcome carnival-goers to rest, recharge, and spend time with family and friends at the museum.
What to expect
Join us to celebrate Notting Hill Carnival with music and design 🎉
A SUNDAY FILLED WITH MUSIC
The museum will be open as usual from 10:00 – 18:00, with carnival music playing throughout the day, curated by our wonderful front of house team. From 12:00 – 14:00, head outside to join Tony from Play It On Pan Events, who will bring the sounds of the steel pan to the museum’s garden.
VISIT OUR FREE DISPLAYS
The museum offers a variety of free-to-visit displays reflecting on the past, present and future of design. You can currently visit:
PLATFORM: Simone Brewster (Level 1)
Future Observatory: Tools for Transition (Level 2)
ARE YOU A LOCAL RESIDENT?
Kensington & Chelsea residents can enjoy free entry to our NIGO: From Japan with Love exhibition during the Notting Hill Carnival on Sunday 30 August and Monday 31 August.
How to access the offer: Local residents must present proof of residency at the ticket desk to collect a free pass. This offer is valid for postcodes W8, W10, W11, W14, NW10, SW5 and SW7. Entry times are subject to capacity.
REFRESHMENTS
Please note that our cafe is temporarily closed, but the Design Kitchen is open for food and drinks (Level 2).
STAY IN TOUCH
Help us spread the word and invite anyone in the community who will be celebrating the carnival. We look forward to welcoming you to the museum.
Remember to share your favourite moments at the museum with us @designmuseum
Booking information
No pre-booking needed for this event.
Children under 16 must be accompanied by a responsible adult at all times
Please note that the upper level of the museum's garden contains woodchip paths and is therefore not accessible for wheelchairs - please get in touch with the team at access@designmuseum.org if you have any questions regarding access requirements
Assistant dogs are welcome but must be on a lead. For further access details, please read our Access Information page
Opening hours:
10:00 – 17:00 Monday to Thursday
10:00 – 18:00 Friday to Sunday
Did you know Notting Hill Carnival was once launched from our building?
The former occupants of the Design Museum building, the Commonwealth Institute, launched the 1977 Notting Hill Carnival from this very site. The launch featured music from the London All Stars steel band, a performance by Black dance and theatre group Shades of Black, and a friendly musical showdown between pioneering sound systems Shadow Hi Fi and Lord Sam, run by Trevor Charles and Lawrence Chambers, aka Lord Sam Soca Wax.
We’re proud and excited to celebrate this history with you as Carnival returns to Kensington this year.
Read more about the story of the Design Museum
From our collection
This striking cover of The Observer celebrates Trinidad Carnival’s colour, creativity and costume traditions. It also connects to the story of Notting Hill Carnival itself: Trinidadian activist Claudia Jones, widely known as the ‘mother’ of Notting Hill Carnival, brought Caribbean Carnival to London in 1959.
By the 1960s, colour printing had transformed Britain’s Sunday supplements, allowing publications to use bold, dramatic photography to capture readers’ attention. Images like this one helped bring international cultural events to British audiences - and celebrate the creativity of Carnival in print.
The Observer magazine, published on 2 May 1965. It features the photograph of a Trinidad carnival participant wearing a bright red hat with a blue fish. credit: Bequest of Romek Marber
Background image: Family day at the museum; photo by Matthew Kaltenborn