Listening to Lived Experience: A Family’s Mystery Visit to Durham Cathedral’s Magna Carta Exhibition
At Healthworks Useful Vision, we believe families with lived experience are experts in accessibility – and their voices matter.
We were delighted to be invited by Family Arts Network North East to support a mystery visit to Durham Cathedral’s Magna Carta exhibition, exploring the experience from the perspective of a family with a child who has a visual impairment.
Experiencing the Exhibition as a Family
A family visited the exhibition as any family would – navigating the space, engaging with displays and using interactive features – with one simple role: enjoy the day and reflect honestly on what worked well and what could be improved for children with visual impairments.
The family were fully supported to take part, including:
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Free family entry
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Refreshments in the Undercroft Café
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An annual pass for future visits
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Travel and parking reimbursement
What the Family Told Us
The feedback was overwhelmingly positive:
“We had an amazing time, thank you for the opportunity. Our child enjoyed exploring the Cathedral. He enjoyed the Lego exhibition, the interactive screens and the hearing device.”
The family particularly valued the interactive elements, which helped create an engaging and accessible experience for children with different needs.
Why Mystery Visits Matter
Mystery visits allow venues to understand accessibility in practice, not just in theory. By centring lived experience, they help:
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Highlight what’s working well
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Identify improvements
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Support genuinely inclusive design
The family’s feedback will be shared directly with Durham Cathedral to help inform future access planning.
Sharing Our Learning
We’re proud that Becky and Julie will be presenting “Managing a Mystery Visit: Our Experience and Learning” at the National Arts and Culture Conference on Thursday 12th February at Northern Stage, sharing insights from this project with the wider sector.
Thank You
We’re grateful to the family, Family Arts Network North East and Durham Cathedral for valuing lived experience and helping create more inclusive cultural spaces for children and families.
Visit the Healthworks Useful Vision webpage for more information about the service and how to get involved.
