The Beaney

The Beaney A free Museum, Art Gallery, Visitor Information Centre and Library situated in the heart of the historic Canterbury
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The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge is a Museum, Art Gallery, Library and Visitor Information Centre situated in the heart of historic Canterbury. This award winning facility provides state-of-the-art exhibition galleries, excellent educational facilities and a varied programme of events for all ages. The building takes its name from its benefactor, Dr James George Beaney, a Canterbury-born man of

modest background who studied medicine before emigrating to Australia, where he found his success. Upon his death in 1891, Dr Beaney left money in his will to the city of Canterbury to build an ‘Institute for Working Men’ with amenities for men from poor backgrounds such as his own. His patronage was fundamental in building the Beaney Institute: a new home for the Canterbury Royal Museum and Free Library, now known as The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge. A cultural hub in East Kent, praised for its welcoming atmosphere, providing a range of services under one roof, uniting art, heritage, books, ideas, information and collections. Whether you are a frequent Library user, a teacher on a Schools Workshop, or an inquisitive explorer studying our treasures from the Ancient worlds; The Beaney is a building for everyone. Canterbury City Council continues to own the Beaney and provides the museum and art galleries - Kent County Council is the library authority.

06/06/2026

🌈 Rainbows, rain and sunshine!

Happy 10 Years of Canterbury Pride everyone! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️



04/06/2026

🪡 Making an imaginary world!

Artists Roma Patel and Rachel Clementine created The Garden made from recycled and sustainable materials. This immersive installation is designed to spark curiosity and encourage playful exploration in babies and young children. 🌱

The Garden is part of the amazing Playground 26 Festival.

Visit to find out more and book!

🙌 It's Volunteers Week and we'd like to say a huge thank you!Last year volunteers generously provided over 715 hours of ...
03/06/2026

🙌 It's Volunteers Week and we'd like to say a huge thank you!

Last year volunteers generously provided over 715 hours of support to the museum whilst gaining experience working with the collection.

Caring for the museum collection and making it accessible takes a huge amount of work and the support we receive from our volunteers is as important as ever.

So as always - thank you to all of our amazing volunteers past and present! 🙌

Are you interested in volunteering at The Beaney? We have a waiting list for collections volunteers but we’re currently looking for friendly volunteers to help provide a warm and inclusive experience onsite for our visitors.

See our recent post or visit our website for more details 👉

02/06/2026

📍 The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge, Canterbury

28/05/2026

Earworm incoming: We will find it! 🐭

We’ve had lots of questions about who else is with Bagpuss in the Smallfilms Gallery. There’s may more famous faces including the Mice from the Mouse Organ!

Find them in the Smallfilms Gallery at The Beaney, Canterbury 📍

26/05/2026

🎉 It’s the Playground 26 Festival

We had such a great time launching the Festival at The Beaney last week.

Playground 26 is a new early years international festival designed to bring together and celebrate the creativity of our young children and families alongside outstanding, engaging national and international work 👶

As well as ‘The Garden’ and ‘Golden Time’ at The Beaney there’s a whole range of amazing activities happening across Kent during the Festival.

Follow PlaygroundKent to find out more 👉

Join Our Volunteer Team at The Beaney! 👋Love meeting people and making them feel welcome? We’re looking for friendly vol...
26/05/2026

Join Our Volunteer Team at The Beaney! 👋

Love meeting people and making them feel welcome? We’re looking for friendly volunteers to help create a warm and inclusive experience for our visitors.

What you’ll do:

• Greet visitors and make a great first impression
• Help people find their way around the building
• Share What’s On and gather feedback
• Support accessibility for everyone

Flexible shifts to suit you 🕒
Full training and ongoing support 🤝
No experience needed – just a positive attitude! 😀

If you're interested please Email [email protected] with ‘Visitor welcome volunteer’ in the subject line 📨

24/05/2026

🥳 Canterbury Unlocked!

What a way to celebrate our city.

What did you enjoy? Let us know in the comments 💬

May Half Term at The Beaney! ⛅The museum is open all Half Term including Bank Holiday Monday. Here's what's happening......
21/05/2026

May Half Term at The Beaney! ⛅

The museum is open all Half Term including Bank Holiday Monday. Here's what's happening...

The Garden: Where Flowers Listen, Clouds Dance, and Children Lead the Way 🌷
Looking for a great experience for your young ones and their siblings? Book your visit to The Garden, an interactive installation designed for babies and children under 5.

SEND Friendly Sessions 🌿
These sessions welcome children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) aged 5+ who would enjoy or benefit from this calm, sensory-focused environment.

10am to 11am every Saturday from Saturday

Part of the Playground 26 Festival

The Garden has Limited capacity and booking essential 🎟

Explore the museum together 🧐
Meet Bagpuss, discover artworks and artefacts from Kent and around the world! You'll find family friendly activities throughout the museum including toys, games and dressing up.

SEND Family Backpacks 🎒
Borrow a backpack designed for made with care to support people who need some sensory support or different ways of exploring the museum.

Get creative ✏
Pick up a sketchbook and some pencils from The Beaney shop or bring your own from home - the galleries are full of inspiration. Let us know what you draw, we love to see everyone's artworks!

One museum trip is never enough 🏛
So hop over to Canterbury Roman Museum where Kids Go Free all Half Term! Take part in the popular Coin Bash to make your own replica Roman coin (£3.50 per coin).

Save or share this post to get planning! 🩷

Address

18 High Street
Canterbury
CT12RA

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

Telephone

+441227862162

Website

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