The Press Office helps fulfil the remit of building the volume and value of visitors to Chiltern Open Air Museum (COAM) by raising the profile through targeting the consumer media locally, regionally and nationally and the travel trade media.

• Developing a PR strategy and plan to stimulate demand and revenue for the Museum, to maximise the PR opportunities around each event and to ensure that the visitor experience is of high standard.

• Promoting the quality kite mark awards achieved by the Museum in 2009 (Museum Accreditation/Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge) to highlight the ongoing high standards of excellence in delivery of its visitor offer.

• Increasing the advertising equivalence value for media coverage year on year.

COAM - where is it?

Chiltern Open Air Museum is set in the beautiful Chiltern Hills - an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Near to Chalfont St. Peter and Chalfont St. Giles in South Buckinghamshire, it is easily reached from the M25 (Junction 17 - Maple Cross), the M40 (Junction 2 - Beaconsfield), and under an hour from central London.

COAM - what is it?

The 45 acre museum is a wealth of over thirty wonderfully restored buildings from town and villages around the area covering over 2000 years of history. Founded over thirty years ago, the Museum has developed into a centre of excellence in the interpretation of the built heritage of the area.

COAM - what happens there?

There are events happening throughout the year to tempt every 'would be' Roman Centurion, Jacobite from 18^th century England, medieval knight, or 'Dad's Army home guard'.

COAM - who is it targeting?

Chiltern Open Air Museum's award winning education programmes offer comprehensive school visits linked to the National Curriculum for Key Stages 1 to 4. It also offers tailor-made programmes for college and university students, as well as adult craft courses for clubs, societies or birthday parties. Guided tours, craft demonstrations, activities and catering for your group are available on request. Corporate hire of the Museum site or historic buildings is also available.

COAM - what is the quality of its delivery?

Chiltern Open Air Museum has been awarded two top prestigious quality kite marks in 2009.

• In February 2009, the Museum was awarded the new status as an Accredited Museum by the national Museums Libraries and Archives Council. This is a quality 'kite mark' to indicate that the museum meets and surpasses national standards in governance, visitor services and collections care. http://www.mla.gov.uk/what/raising_standards/accreditation

• In March 2009 the Museum was one of the first in the country to receive the Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge, promising to engage in the ongoing process to sustain high quality learning outside the classroom to meet all of the LOtC Quality Badge indicators. http://www.lotc.org.uk/

6 November 2011 Going, Going...Lots of Bargains!
Friends of Chiltern Open Air Museum are holding their popular Annual Charity Auction on Saturday 19 November at 1.00 pm – and there look like there are some bargains to be had! Held in the Chalfont St Peter Community Centre, this 31st Auction looks like being a record breaker!  Last year’s made a record number of 370 lots which was the biggest sale since they started the event in 1977 – and this year’s Auction looks like it could be even bigger!

31 October 2011 How to Avoid High Street Hassle this weekend!
Award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum is offering visitors the chance to avoid the hassle of the high street – and come along to the newly refurbished Museum Shop this weekend.  The Museum, near to Chalfont St Giles, is holding its first Christmas Shopping Weekend (5 and 6 November between 12.00 pm and 4.00 pm) and it promises to be packed full of great ideas for Christmas.

24 October 2011 The Halloween Event of the Year - Specially Spectacularly Scary!
There will be spooky goings on at award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum, near Chalfont St Giles,  this Friday 28 October – at the Halloween Spectacular.  From 6.00 pm until 9.00 pm there will be hands-on and hands-in fun for all the family....but only if you are all brave enough!  And there is chance to enter the fancy dress competition, so you can choose to dress up as ‘scarily’ as you like!

25 August 2011 Museum's Medieval Weekend
Award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum in Bucks has an added bonus this weekend (10-11 September) when visitors will again have chance to see a medieval history reenactment group in action. Following the very successful Easter Weekend Medieval Event at the Museum, re-enactment group 'Paladins of Chivalry' have asked to come back to the south Bucks site for a training weekend for their group. 

22 August 2011 Medieval Minstrels at Museum!
Award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum welcomes medieval minstrels ‘Trouvere’ over the Bank Holiday weekend (27-29 August). They will be performing medieval music and stories on 27 August and performances of medieval plays based on the medieval tales of Reynard the Fox for Sunday 28 and Monday 29 August. Masks, slapstick and interaction, together with the authentic music of the period played on gittern, flutes, harp and English bagpipes will provide visitors with a lively and entertaining performance for all the family!

15 August 2011 Meet The Romans at Chiltern Open Air Museum
There is going to be great excitement this weekend (Aug 20-21) at Chiltern Open Air Museum! Re-enactment and research group, the Roman Military Research Society are giving the visitors to Chiltern Open Air Museum a wonderful opportunity to learn about the life of the Roman Soldiers throughout the Roman period. Visitors will be able to see living history brought back to life through a wide range of activities around the site  – and even have chance to see a 2000 year old Fashion Show!

8 August 2011 Meet the Tudors at Chiltern Open Air Museum
Visitors to award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum this weekend (13-14 August) will have chance to experience life as it was in Tudor times – working, resting and playing! The Museum has invited Tudor re-enactment group, Hungerford Household, to demonstrate a country gentleman's household from the sixteenth century. Hungerford Household is a re-enactment group with over fifteen years experience of bringing the Tudor period to life at historic houses and museums throughout the UK. Chiltern Open Air Museum provides a perfect setting for this exciting event for all the family

1 August 2011 Story Telling Weekend at Museum
This weekend (6-7 August) at Chiltern Open Air Museum there is a wonderful opportunity to hear and participate in stories from around the world. There will be a medieval story teller who will perform traditional stories from the Medieval and Tudor periods in Britain in the wonderful setting of the Museum’s traditional buildings

25 July 2011 Meet our Norman Conquerors
This weekend (30-31 July) you will be able to ‘Meet our Norman Conquerors’ at award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum. Visit the living quarters of the Norman soldiers in the Museum fields and find out about Norman warfare techniques including archery demonstrations, opportunities to explore their armour and weapons and the amazing opportunity to see their medieval ‘Siege Engine ‘in action!  The living history camp is open from 10.00 am-5.00 pm on Saturday and Sunday – see www.coam.org.uk for more details.

14 June 2011 Popular Annual Heavy Horse show returns to Museum this weekend (19 June)
A host of working horses from the Hertfordshire Heavy Horse Association visit award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum on Sunday 19 June to demonstrate the essential role of heavy horses in the traditional rural landscape.

6 June 2011 Digging for victory at Chiltern Open Air Museum
This weekend ( June 11-12) at award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum visitors will get a chance to help ‘Dig For Victory’ and find out about the traditional vegetables being grown during WW2.

29 May 2011 Middle Ages Revisited - Action Packed Weekend at Chiltern Open Air Museum
A visit to the Chiltern Open Air Museum this weekend (4-5 June 2011) will provide a glimpse into the medieval way of life and warfare as a small group of historic interpreters from the 15^th Century Living History group, ‘Pelican-in-her-Piety,’ makes their annual visit to this interesting and lively Museum.

29 May 2011 Wonderful Wednesdays - An Offer you cant refuse!
Award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum is making a special ‘Wonderful Wednesdays’ offer for visitors!  Each Wednesday afternoon visitors to the South Bucks Museum can take advantage of the special ‘two for one’ deal when they visit after 2.00 pm on any Wednesday. Visitor Services Officer Autumn Acker and her team of enthusiastic volunteer management trainees came up with the idea – and gave it the name ‘Wonderful Wednesdays’.

24 May 2011 One Thousand Years ago in the Chilterns...!
Would you like to know what life was like 1000 years ago?  Then head over to the multi award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum to see Vikings and Saxons this Bank Holiday weekend.  The popular re-enactment group of ‘warriors’ and ‘villagers’ will be visiting the Museum over the weekend of 28 – 30 May to create a community at the  South Bucks Museum site for visitors to enjoy and learn about life in times gone by!

26 April 2011 BARGAIN - REDUCE PRICE ENTRY TO MUSEUM!
Award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum is celebrating its 30th anniversary on Tuesday 3 May.  Come along after 2.00 pm and pay 1981 entrance prices of 50p for adults and 20p for children. Come along and explore our unique collection of local historic buildings, see crafts people at work and visit our newborn lambs! An absolute bargain!

12 April 2011 Best of British Event not to be Missed!
This weekend (April 16-17) at award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum is one not to be missed! Visitors have chance to see the wide array of crafts on display at the Best of British event and will also have chance to see the new arrivals as the Museum celebrates this years lambs in the traditional Chilterns Lambing Fold.

4 April 2011 Busy 'Meeting' Weekend Planned at Award Winning Museum!
This weekend (April 9-10) is a busy one at the Chiltern Open Air Museum – and will appeal to all!  Visitors will not only have chance to ‘Meet the Victorians’ but also meet the newborn lambs at the Museums Victorian Farm!  First to make their appearance this week were twin lambs – a boy and a girl, closely followed by four more!

4 April 2011 Over to Ewe, Amy!
The first lambs of the season have been born at the Chiltern Open Air Museum – and they are twins, a boy and a girl! Seen here cuddling one of the newborns is Museum Heritage Trainee Amy Lang of High Wycombe.

31 March 2011 Medieval Knights Come to the Chilterns!
This Easter sees the world of Medieval Knights and Pageantry come to the Chilterns– award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum has a fun packed weekend lined up for visitors. The weekend begin on Friday 22 April  where you can visit the medieval stalls to find out more about cooking, tailoring and embroidery and many other everyday tasks as you can chat to the with re-enactment group Paladins of Chivalry. 

28 March 2011 A Mothers Work...Calling all Mums!
Drop a strong hint that you’d like to go to award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum this weekend to show your family that ‘a Mothers Work is’ truly never done! Celebrating Mothering Sunday , the Museum this year is preparing a Weekend Special event with a difference, as your family will be able to join in the Mothers Day celebrations and see how  ‘mothers’ role has developed over the years. The event is being sponsored by Tesco in Gerrards Cross who are donating free daffodils for the first two hundred lucky mums!

15 March 2011 Fun Run for the Museum
Chiltern Open Air Museum are holding a sponsored 5k (13.00hr) or 1k (14.00hr)Fun Run on Sunday 10th April, with the route running along picturesque farm track and woodlands in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Sponsored by Arqiva and Clancy Dacwra, there are free teeshirts for all runners and  a prize of a hot air balloon trip for two if you are the person that raises the most money

15 March 2011 Friends of Museum Quiz Night
The Friends of Chiltern Open Air Museum are holding a Quiz Night with Fish and Chip Supper this Saturday, 19th March at 7.30pm at the Chalfont St Peter Church Hall.  Tickets are £12 each including supper, so why not come along and bring friends and family –all welcome!

10 January 2011 Your Museum Needs you! Your Museum needs you! 
This is the message that award winning Chiltern Open Air Museum is now announcing, following the success of their funding bid to Heritage Lottery Fund under its ‘Skills for the Future’ programme. The £184,000 grant will be received over a four year period and will enable the Museum to take on eight trainees.

2010 Press Releases
2009 Press Releases

Jacky Brookes
Press Officer, Chiltern Open Air Museum
marketingcoam@btconnect.com
Office Tel: +44 (0) 1494 871117
Mobile No: 07970 053883
Fax No: 01494 872774