Vestry House Museum

Vestry House Museum is a well-loved cultural and heritage site in Walthamstow Village, which tells the story of Waltham Forest through its collection and themed displays. It gives a fascinating glimpse into how people lived and worked, and how the borough has changed over time. 

Situated in Walthamstow Village, the building, now Grade II listed, was constructed in 1730 to house the parish workhouse and was later used as a police station, an armoury, a building merchant’s store, and a private home. In 1931 the building opened to the public as a local history museum.

Waltham Forest Council embarks on revitalisation of Vestry House Museum

Waltham Forest Council is working to revitalise Vestry House Museum and has appointed a multi-disciplinary design team led by architects Studio Weave to work on the project.

Working in consultation with local residents, the revitalisation project will transform the local history museum into a welcoming heritage destination where visitors can find a place to work, rest and discover the diverse stories of Waltham Forest and its people. 

The revitalisation will include an enhanced heritage and community offer, improved access, new creative workspaces, and a café. Improvements to the site will increase the accessibility and environmental sustainability of the building and its operations. 

The revitalisation project is supported by £4.5m from the borough’s Levelling Up Fund (including £800k match funding from Waltham Forest Council) to deliver projects which will unlock Walthamstow town centre’s potential as an inclusive, safe, and welcoming cultural destination. 

A new collaborative community model

Vestry House Museum has been awarded a £150,000 development grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the Revitalisation Project.

Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK’s heritage. Vestry House Museum, Heritage in the Making, since 1730, is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players we will be able to deliver the first phase of a three-and-a-half-year plan to make the museum’s collections and displays more accessible, inclusive and relevant, to residents and visitors from further afield.

Within the initial year displays will be co-curated with local community groups, in preparation for the reopening of the museum in 2026 following capital works to improve the building. We will also explore how to establish displays of museum objects in sites around the borough and preparing to digitise the museum and archive collections, making them accessible online. 

The future of the museum

Once fully operational, Vestry House Museum will welcome more visitors, up to 80,000 per year, deliver an enhanced learning and training programme for up to 60 school visits annually and provide 60 training and employment opportunities for local young people. It will also support the local economy through the provision of creative workspace. 

Vestry House Museum will establish a new collaborative and sustainable operational model once it reopens. During the design phase, the council will be seeking an operator through a competitive process to run the museum, on-site workspace, café and public programmes.

Waltham Forest Archives and Local Studies Library service have relocated to a fully accessible site at Chingford Assembly Hall. 

Find out more

Vestry House Museum 

Waltham Forest Archives and Local Studies Library

Conservation areas and listed buildings

The National Lottery Heritage Fund

Donations help fund a wide variety of projects such as new acquisitions, exhibitions, public engagement, education and learning events.

To donate from a bank account, or if you are thinking of making a bequest please contact us at the email below and type 'Donations and bequests' in the subject line.

If you have an object, artwork or photograph of local historical interest you wish to donate, please contact us via the email address below. The curator will advise whether the Museum can accept your item offer based on our collection policy.

 Please don’t send items by post or drop them at the museum as it is closed for redevelopment.