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Bethlem Museum of the Mind Impact Report 2024–25

Bethlem Museum of the Mind is a unique charitable museum housed within the Maudsley Hospital site in Beckenham, dedicated to keeping mental health visible in UK culture and society through art, history and lived experience. In 2024/25 it welcomed 13,666 visitors — a new record — including 3,324 in learning groups, and loaned collection works to major institutions reaching a further 151,940 people internationally. Exhibitions included Charlotte Johnson Wahl's paintings from the Maudsley Hospital 50 years ago and Charles Lutyens' work on old age psychiatric care. The year saw a collection deracialisation project, new social media reach (including 174,500 TikTok views of a Secret London film), and installation of William Kurelek's The Maze in the Maudsley Hospital Boardroom. Total income was £532K.

Report snapshot
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About

Permanent collections display (arts and artefacts spanning history of mental health services and patient experience); Temporary exhibitions: A World Apart (Charles Lutyens, June–November 2024 — old age psychiatric care through art therapy); What It Felt Like (Charlotte Johnson Wahl paintings from Maudsley Hospital, December 2024–March 2025); Lost in Parys (through June 2024); works loaned to five major institutions internationally; Schools learning programme (demystifying mental health services, normalising help-seeking — 3,324 participants); Collection deracialisation project (removal of offensive catalogue language, deaccession of racist artwork transferred to Jim Crow Museum); Collection acquisitions (Charles Bronson artworks, Charles Lutyens The Group, Bibi Herrera ceramics); William Kurelek's The Maze installed in Maudsley Hospital Boardroom; new social media channels on TikTok, LinkedIn and Bluesky; influencer partnerships including Secret London (174,500 TikTok views in 2 months) Custom geography from upload: Beckenham, London Borough of Bromley, UK (with national and international reach)

Key Metrics

Key Metric 1 13,666 visitors in 2024/25 — the highest annual figure in the Museum's 55-year history; 3,324 school, university and other learning group participants
Key Metric 2 151,940 people reached through loans of collection works to exhibitions at Scottish National Portrait Gallery (27,684), Museum Dr Guislain Gent (58,263), Charité Berlin (48,717), Towner Eastbourne (14,000) and Royal College of Nursing (3,276)
Key Metric 3 £532K total income; £533K expenditure; 58% of individual visitors disclosed experience of mental health difficulties; 84.5% motivated to understand and support others with mental health issues

Key Outcomes

  • For the second consecutive year, ethnic profile of individual visitors mirrors that of the London Borough of Bromley; ethnic profile of learning group visitors approaches that of Greater London — demonstrating equitable reach
  • For the second consecutive year, over 90% of respondents said the Museum amplifies the voices of mental health service users; 13.2% of visitors had contact with SLaM NHS services — 45% point gap with the 58% who disclosed mental health experience, demonstrating reach into undiagnosed/untreated communities
  • 174,500 TikTok views of Secret London film in 2 months; 4,500 YouTube views of Tom Rees (Vaguely Mundane) film in March 2025; Ovartaci loan from Museum Ovartaci Aarhus on show for 8 months; Kurelek's The Maze returned after exhibitions in Bonn and Berlin

Geography

Other

Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
Total income £138,600,000 and total expenditure £108,350,000 (year ended 31 March 2025, charity no. 1068852); 5 million people welcomed through palace gates; £138.6m income...
Key Metric 2
Over 160,000 members making 300,000+ visits generating £5.8m membership income plus £814k Gift Aid; 217,400 £1 Universal Credit tickets sold; 304,000 visitors to Untold...
Key Metric 3
89% of visitors gained a better understanding of stories (discovery); 83% felt happier after their visit (joy); 76% were inspired to learn more; 28,365...
83% of visitors felt happier after their visit; 89% gained better understanding of palace stories; 94% charitable activities allocation of total expenditure; Tomorrow's Tower campaign secured £1.9m including £1m from Sandys Trust and National Lottery Heritage Fund development grant
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
3,943 young people reached across 279 learning sessions in 16 programmes; 46 public performances reaching 8,517 audience members
Key Metric 2
100+ Emerging Professionals supported with 159 paid performance opportunities; 32% from regions beyond London; 32% from African, Asian, Caribbean or Mixed Heritage backgrounds
Key Metric 3
46% of Under-18 participants receive bursaries; 46% benefit from free access (Pupil Premium, free school meals or low-income families)
Largest single concert audience of 1,500 for British Standard Time at Berlin's Konzerthaus; NYJO Under 18s alumni have gone on to Birmingham Conservatoire, Leeds Conservatoire and Cambridge University
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
1,363 young members attended Future Yard's youth and community music programmes in 2024/25
Key Metric 2
166 participants enrolled on the Sound Check live-events training programme, the highest cohort yet
Key Metric 3
1,091 free tickets distributed through the Neighbourhood Tickets Scheme, a 50%+ increase on the prior year
90% of Sound Check participants reported an increase in skills and sector awareness, and 91% an increase in confidence
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
10,224 pupils supported through Theatre and Film Festivals and workshops in 2023/24
Key Metric 2
8,775 young people performed across 67 partner theatres in the Theatre Festival
Key Metric 3
604 teachers supported to develop their skills through resources and workshops
100% of surveyed teachers reported their students had greater pride in themselves following the Theatre Festival