Named after Cheltenham-born Edward Wilson, the Art Gallery and Museum has launched an environment for discovering local heroes and archive collections. In particular, the museum has a collection dedicated to Wilson, who joined Robert Falcon Scott on his ill-fated 1912 expedition to the South Pole.

The Wilson also houses the recently re-located Tourist Information Centre, a cafe-bistro and The Wilson shop. The cafe serves breakfast, light lunches and home baked specialities. On the first floor mezzanine, there are spaces that can be hired out for meetings, various functions and other events. The Wilson Shop stocks a variety of stationery, gifts, walking guides and exhibition catalogues and relevant merchandise. It also plays host to The Guild at 51, a new gallery from the Gloucestershire Guild of Craftsmen. The guild, founded in 1933, aims to promote the skilled work of its members and with a brand new exhibition space; they have somewhere to hold workshops, talks and exhibitions.

The Wilson has a mission to provide a high quality education for all during their visit to the museum with a dedicated Learning Team. The team work with schools and the general public to offer programmes and workshops, multicultural celebrations, family friendly activities and reminiscence work. In an exciting partnership with the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, the learning team can offer school groups a way to step back in time and enjoy a Victorian day out and take part in evacuee experiences.

Admission

Free to all, although there may be additional prices for specific events or exhibitions. In such cases, details can be found on the exhibition page.  

Opening Times

Monday – Sunday              09.30 – 17.15

The museum is closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day.

Details on current exhibitions and events can be found on the website, or in the current brochure which can be found and downloaded here. Collections at the museum include local history, the Edward Wilson archives, a number of archaeological discoveries and an arts and crafts movement. The museum is known to have exhibited galleries of century old paintings and a collection of unusual objects collated by local people.