{"id":7054955,"date":"2026-09-02T19:10:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T19:10:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/young-va-review-everything-to-know-about-the-new-look-london-museum-of-childhood\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T19:10:57","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T19:10:57","slug":"young-va-review-everything-to-know-about-the-new-look-london-museum-of-childhood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=7054955","title":{"rendered":"Young V&A Review: Everything To Know About The New-Look London Museum Of Childhood"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Young V&A Review: Here\u2019s What We Thought \u2013 And What You Need To Know<\/h2>\n
The Young V&A in Bethnal Green, London, is the shiny new version of what was previously the V&A Museum of Childhood.<\/p>\n
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It has recently reopened after a multi-year, \u00a313m revamp.<\/p>\n
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We were all big fans of the the slightly faded charm of the old version, so were keen to see if the Young V&A could live up to my children\u2019s \u2013 museum of \u2013 childhood memories.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s our Young V&A review and everything you need to know before you go.<\/p>\n
What Is The Young V&A?<\/h2>\n
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Young V&A is the newly reopened version of the V&A (Victoria and Albert) Museum of Childhood, now designed for and \u2013 partly \u2013 by kids. <\/p>\n
In the same beautiful old building as the Museum of Childhood, Young V&A has three permanent galleries, Imagine, Play and Design. <\/p>\n
It showcases over 2,000 objects from across the V&A\u2019s collection, with a lot of old and new childhood favourites both adults and kids will recognise.<\/p>\n
Including a big selection of Barbie\u2026<\/p>\n
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Where has Sindy gone though? Poor Sindy.<\/p>\n
There is also a big mix of smaller, interactive exhibitions and a story-telling stage.<\/p>\n
The new-look museum also houses a dedicated exhibition space, and the first paid exhibition will be\u00a0Japan: Myths to Manga<\/em>, opens in October 2023.<\/p>\n
Is Young V&A Free Entry?<\/h2>\n
Yes, the Young V&A is free to enter,<\/p>\n
How Busy Is Young V&A?<\/h2>\n
We went at the end of the school holidays and it was, as you\u2019d expect, busy! <\/p>\n
It is probably a wise idea to get there early, we walked straight in at 10am but when we left after lunch there was a 30 minute queue outside.<\/p>\n
Be warned, when it is busy, it is also really noisy due, to how echoey the building is.<\/p>\n
How Long Does It Take To Go Round Young V&A?<\/h2>\n
It is small! If you have kids that like to zip round museums you could probably do the whole of Young V&A pretty quickly.<\/p>\n
A big chunk of the Play gallery is aimed at younger kids which means it\u2019s even quicker with tweens and teens.<\/p>\n
I wouldn\u2019t devote a whole day to it (half should be more than fine).<\/p>\n
What Is There For Younger Children?<\/h2>\n
It\u2019s brilliant for babies and younger kids. <\/p>\n
The ground floor Play section has two big play areas, including a sensory environment for pre-walkers, and a section with big soft play building blocks.<\/p>\n
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The sensory play area is a safe and clean place to take your just-crawling baby.<\/p>\n
And hopefully you can sit and drink tea and have a rest.<\/p>\n
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What Is There For Tweens And Teens?<\/h2>\n
The Play Gallery\u2019s game design space \u2018The Arcade\u2019 with new and old video and board games is fun.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also an interactive Minecraft installation. <\/p>\n
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The Design section focuses on different ways design can change the world and is really absorbing.<\/p>\n
(I\u2019d love to come back minus-kids during term time).<\/p>\n
We all liked the Imagination section, with toys, optical illusions and small world houses. <\/p>\n
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Is There A Cafe At Young V&A?<\/h2>\n
Yes there is a caf\u00e9 at Young V&A, in the main hall. Be warned, the caf\u00e9 doesn\u2019t have the widest choice of options, especially not for the pickier of kids. <\/p>\n
However, the main hall also has space for you to eat your own food if you\u2019d rather take it with you.<\/p>\n
There are a lot of other food options in the area outside the museum too. <\/p>\n
Is There A Gift Shop?<\/h2>\n
Yes as expected, there is also a gift shop. Whereas before it was situation in the main courtyard, it has now been moved to the front of the building, by the entrance and exit. <\/p>\n
Strangely for a child-focused museum, there\u2019s not the widest choice of fun \/ small things for kids here either (lots of lovely expensive stuff for adults though!).<\/p>\n
Is There Pram Storage?<\/h2>\n
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Young V&A also has a lot of pram storage. There were a lot of prams!<\/p>\n
Where Is The Young V&A?<\/h2>\n
Young V&A is at Cambridge Heath Rd, Bethnal Green, London E2 9PA<\/p>\n
When Is Young V&A Open?<\/h2>\n
It is open every day from 10.00 \u2013 17.45.<\/p>\n
What Did We Think?<\/h2>\n
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We liked it. We were initially sad to see that some of their favourites from the old museum \u2013 the rocking horse, the maid fancy dress, the magnetic iron filling heads that never really worked \u2013 were long gone. However, there was lots of newness they did love.<\/p>\n
The Young V&A looks fantastic, especially main hall and the mirrored staircase, and there is a huge amount of attention to colourful detail, from graffiti murals through to neon signs.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s always going to be hard for a museum that has toys behind glass meaning you can\u2019t play with them to keep it compelling, but there\u2019s a big focus on interaction in other areas.<\/p>\n
It is also hard to balance everything for all ages but does feel like there\u2019s a little bit less for older kids.<\/p>\n
My two are probably at the upper end of the age limit for spending the maximum amount of time here, and in the time it\u2019s been closed they\u2019ve come to love the V&A proper, which we can spend hours at. <\/p>\n
But we\u2019re all looking forward to coming back for the new exhibition.<\/p>\n
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