Victoria Hillman, Project Lead: Sustainable Development and Decarbonisation

Hi Victoria, can you introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your role here at Amgueddfa Cymru?

Of course! I was born and brought up in Cardiff, so, like many people, my earliest memories of Amgueddfa Cymru are school trips to St Fagans and Big Pit! The immersive experiences provided were so vivid and inspirational – especially as a child when your mind is open to all possibilities. A “few” years after these formative experiences, I was fortunate enough to join Amgueddfa Cymru in April 2024 as the Project Lead for Sustainable Development and Decarbonisation. My remit is organisation-wide, so I interact with all Museum sites and with every team. It’s a privilege being able to work with so many different people. Each site is unique and colleagues across the organisation are extremely knowledgeable and incredibly passionate about their roles.

I am responsible for ensuring Amgueddfa Cymru remains compliant with environmental legislation and for driving improvements in other aspects relating to environmental sustainability across the organisation. This ranges from looking at procurement practices, to how exhibitions are designed; from optimising environmental conditions within galleries to promoting active travel with staff and volunteers; from enhancing biodiversity to decarbonising the estate.  

In the last 10 months, I have also worked part time on the sustainability aspects of the Redevelopment Project at the National Slate Museum. The design work is now complete, and May is the month when the site is handed over to contractors for construction work to begin – it’s a very exciting time for the project!

As citizens of the world, we know how crucial sustainability is, in practice. What can you tell us about the work we're doing at Amgueddfa Cymru to meet the targets set out across Wales?

Heat pump being installed in St Fagans

Indeed. Amgueddfa Cymru declared a climate emergency and a nature emergency in 2019. We have long taken our commitment to protecting the environment seriously, but since this important milestone, we’ve increased our efforts and provided inspiration for others to follow. Our 2030 Strategy set out six commitments, one of which was “putting the planet first”. This commitment underpins our desire to contribute to the Welsh public sector achieving carbon net zero by 2030. Across the estate, work has been on-going to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels by upgrading equipment to more efficient versions and by replacing heating systems with electrically powered alternatives (e.g. air source heat pumps). Over 5 years (2019/20 to 2023/24), the consumption of natural gas has reduced by 36%.

In addition to decarbonising the estate, Amgueddfa Cymru operates in a way that fully aligns with the requirements of the Well-being of Future Generations Act. Consideration of the five ways of working (Collaboration, Integration, Involvement, Prevention and Long Term) is embedded in internal processes and reporting.

You talk about ‘Putting the planet first’; what projects happening across our museums today are helping us create a sustainable Wales?

I’ve already mentioned the great progress in decarbonising the estate and that work is continuing thanks to funding made available by the Public Sector Low Carbon Heat Grant. From January to March 2025, eight buildings at four sites had fossil fuel heating systems (natural gas, LPG and oil) replaced with air source heat pumps. We have plans in place to carry out similar work in 2025/26, pending the approval of funding applications.

Our Roman Garden in the National Roman Legion Museum

On a larger and longer-term scale, there are two projects currently in the design stage which will embed sustainability in the culture sector over the coming 5–10 years. The first is the redevelopment of Roman Caerleon which is a joint effort between Amgueddfa Cymru, Cadw and Newport City Council. The project aims to maximise the potential of Caerleon’s Roman heritage while improving the visitor experience and attracting more people. One key to project success will be ensuring sufficient works are carried out in order to adapt the sites to the impacts that changing climate will bring. In a similar vein, the second project where a focus on climate change adaptation will be key is the redevelopment of National Museum Cardiff. It is no secret that the 100-year-old building has experienced challenges in recent times and there is no simple fix. A multi-disciplinary team has been established in order to plan the optimum way forward to both preserve and modernise this beautiful and iconic building.

From a people perspective, the really powerful internal project is the roll out of Carbon Literacy training. This started back in 2018 with a small group of dedicated individuals and has snowballed into hundreds of staff members being trained and becoming certified carbon literate. A key benefit of the Carbon Literacy training is that behaviour changes are encouraged at home as well as in the workplace – staff members who have taken the course see this as a strong selling point.

More broadly, daily work across the Museum contributes to a more sustainable Wales. Natural Sciences Curators carry out pioneering research, describe species and monitor invasive species; Curators and Conservators interpret and preserve items so that they can be understood by today’s visitors and enjoyed by future visitors; the Learning Team provide resources to inspire and stimulate enquiring minds; the Engagement Team offer a variety of accessible and inclusive activities and opportunities to people from across Wales; the Visitor Experience team use their extensive knowledge to answer questions and spark imagination in visitors… The list goes on.

We have the Senedd's Biodiversity Day, Endangered Species Day, International Day of Biodiversity and World Bee Day, to name a few, highlighted in our diaries this month! How can we get involved with these key dates, as a collection of seven national museums and a collections centre?

Action Summit 2025 held in National Museum Cardiff

May is certainly a busy month for nature-based celebrations! Such days provide the opportunity to focus on particular campaigns and, more importantly, to collaborate with colleagues in other public sector or third sector organisations. Quite often, individuals have similar goals, but may lack influence or direction alone.  By joining forces (and there are a lot of brilliant organisations across Wales), we are stronger and more targeted. This was never more evident than at the Action Summit held on 29 April at National Museum Cardiff to mark the release of the Future Generations 2025 Report. This inspiring day cemented the fact that nature, culture and a well-being economy are essential to creating the Wales we’d all like to see.

People may know us as indoor and outdoor museums, but they may not know about our gardens and wild meadows! Tell us about these.

Volunteer gardening in our GRAFT garden, National Waterfront Museum

Yes – we have some beautiful gardens, meadows, woodland and wetland habitats across the Museum estate. The site with most outdoor space is St Fagans National Museum of History; this is where our Gardening Team is based. The Gardening Team create and look after formal gardens in the area surrounding St Fagans Castle and in recent years have introduced environmentally friendly methods such as planting perennials rather than annuals, harvesting rainwater for irrigation purposes, using peat-free compost and switching from fossil fuel–powered equipment to electric alternatives. At the National Roman Legion Museum, the Learning Team have recreated what a Roman garden may have looked like, while ensuring there are plenty of species present to attract pollinators.

#NoMowMay in the National Wool Museum

Speaking of pollinators, all museum sites enthusiastically support No Mow May and wildflower plug plants were planted in the urban meadow at National Museum Cardiff and in three areas at St Fagans earlier this year. The GRAFT garden at the National Waterfront Museum proudly combines food production with growing pollinator-friendly species. The National Wool Museum is located next to Nant Bargod and the flood meadow there is full of life – both plants and animals. A family-friendly trail has been created to encourage people to explore more!

And finally, we save the best for last. What's your favourite piece in our collection?

Such a tough question and it’s impossible to answer of course! I really love old, industrial machinery – especially when it’s still working. There are great examples of this on display across the organisation – at the National Wool Museum, National Slate Museum, Big Pit National Coal Museum and National Waterfront Museum. The industrial items at the National Collections Centre are also fantastic and are a real eclectic mix – as you’d expect from the stores of a national museum!

Trilobite from our collection

However, if you’re going to force me to pick one item, my heart lies with the Evolution of Wales gallery in National Museum Cardiff. My degree was in Environmental Geoscience and I am fascinated by natural processes – plate tectonics, ocean currents, rock formation, the variety and adaptability of life on Earth… My favourite collection would therefore have to be the trilobite fossils, while an individual piece would be the imprint of a Megalosaurus jaw, found near Bridgend in 1898. It’s exhilarating to learn that huge carnivores used to roam the place that we now call home!

Imprint of a Megalosaurus jaw

At St Fagans National Museum of History, the rose garden, or Rosery, is full of colour and scent during the summer. But behind the beauty, there is a lot of hard work, and a long and interesting story.

The first Rosery was planned in 1898 by Hugh Pettigrew, the head gardener at the time. It had winding grass paths, trellises with climbing roses, and a canal planted with water lilies and filled with ornamental fish. More than 100 types of roses were planted in the garden.

After the First World War, the Rosery was not looked after. The canal was filled in, and the trellises and pergolas were removed. In the 1940s, after the Plymouth family donated St Fagans Castle and grounds to the Museum, a simpler rose garden was created, with triangular beds.

In 1998, the Museum decided to restore Pettigrew’s original design. The old canal was dug out and replanted with water lilies. The triangular beds were removed, and new curved beds were laid out around the canal, following Pettigrew’s plan. Roses were chosen carefully, based on a list made by Pettigrew in 1904.

However, over time, many of the old roses became unhealthy. They suffered badly from a disease called black spot, which makes the leaves turn yellow, develop black spots and fall off. Before the Clean Air Act of 1956, black spot was rare because the air was full of sulphur from pollution, which helped protect the plants. But when the air became cleaner, black spot became a much bigger problem.

In 2017, the Rosery was replanted again. This time, many modern roses were used, strong, healthy plants that flower for a long time and still have the beauty and scent of traditional roses. Most of the roses are from David Austin, a famous rose breeder. One special rose growing in the garden is called ‘Roald Dahl’, named after the famous author who was born in Cardiff.

We still garden in the spirit of the Edwardian period, because most of the ornamental gardens at St Fagans date back from that time. The Edwardians loved roses - and so do we! But looking after them is not always glamorous. Every January, the gardeners prune the roses hard to keep them healthy. Then the beds are mulched with manure, we add manure to the soil to feed it. Healthy soil helps the roses to grow strong and healthy.

Throughout the summer, the gardeners deadhead the roses to encourage more flowers, but they leave some blooms to make rose hips, which are used to decorate the historic houses in winter. Around the roses, there are also flowering perennial plants like lavender and violas planted to help pollinators like bees and butterflies. 

Some roses, called single roses, have fewer petals and an open centre. These are better for insects because bees can easily reach the nectar and pollen. Some of our favourites include roses called ‘Tottering-by- Gently’ and ‘Starlight Symphony’.

Today, the Rosery is full of colour and scent. The new roses look and feel like old roses, but they flower again and again through the summer. They remind us of the love, care, and hard work that goes into keeping a garden full of life.

Over the last year Amgueddfa Cymru has been running live audio described tours at National Museum Cardiff, St Fagans National History Museum and the National Roman Legion Museum.  These are specially designed for our visually impaired audience and take place on specific advertised dates. Audio descriptions (AD) are additional commentaries and in-depth descriptions led by curatorial and learning department staff. 

At the National Roman Legion Museum, through touching museum objects visitors find out about Romans settling into life in Caerleon. At National Museum Cardiff and St Fagans National History Museum tours are also linked to the museum’s collections and have included ‘Meet the Clog Maker’ and ‘Meet the Dinosaurs’.

The content of the sessions varies depending on the theme but can involve a walking tour, handling specimens or descriptions of paintings, installations, and sculptures.

Audio Described Tours at St Fagans National Museum of History 

At St Fagans the Audio Described tours give participants the opportunity to explore the rich and varied collections at the museum, from the historic buildings to the wonderful galleries delving into over 200 000 years of human history in Wales, to the beautiful gardens, woodlands and natural spaces, through hands on sensory experiences. 

St Fagans is a working museum which showcases traditional crafts and activities, bringing St Fagans alive, in workshops where craftsmen still demonstrate their traditional skills. Recent tours have included visits to the Weaver working in the Woolen Mill, the Clog Maker and the Miller working in the Flour Mill, where the visitors have been able to hear firsthand from the crafts people and experience their different working environments, their tools and the products they make. 

St Fagans is also a working farm, where visitors can encounter native breeds of livestock in the fields and farmyard. Demonstrations of farming tasks take place, so an audio described tour to the farmyard during lambing season was a must! Participants enjoyed the sounds and smells of the farmyard and were able to learn all about the work of the farmers and the animals they care for. 

Visitors enjoyed a guided sensory Mindful Nature Walk through the beautiful gardens and woodland at St Fagans, visiting the Castle Gardens, where they learnt about the trees, plants and wildlife there and took time to pause and enjoy the nature around them.

Audio Described Tours at National Roman Legion Museum

On audio described tours at the National Roman Legion Museum visitors are able to get close to and touch Roman artefacts. These have helped give an impression of life in the Roman settlement. For example, there are roof tiles and bricks that feature the stamp of the legion, and one roof tile actually has a Roman soldier sandal (Caligae) print on it.  Visitors are encouraged to touch this and then handle a pair of replica sandals, and this can give a fuller picture of the original object.

The Romans were known for creating beautiful mosaics. Visitors on the tour are encouraged to touch and trace the patterns on the labyrinth mosaic at the National Legion Museum. This was probably a dining room floor from the Legate’s Residence. It was found in Caerleon Churchyard, 1865 and dates the 1st to 3rd century A.D.

Audio Described Tours at National Museum Cardiff

National Museum Cardiff has one of Europe’s best collections of Impressionist art and the artworks are very popular with all our visitors.  This live audio described talk took place in the gallery space where the audience heard detailed descriptions of selected artworks.  They were able to get closer to the paintings and sculptures, ask questions and engage in discussions.  Afterwards, there was an opportunity to interact with and handle tactile interpretations of the artworks.

An Audio Described Tour can allow time for a more in-depth discussion about a touring exhibition. A tour of the exhibition celebrating 100 years of the BBC was supplemented by a quiz which invited visitors to guess the BBC drama theme tunes and name the famous TV detectives from audio descriptions.

Find more information on our programme of audio described tours, including details of forthcoming tours, on the Audio Described Tours webpage.

Results of the Super Scientist Competition 2025

Congratulations to all the fantastic schools who contributed to this years investigation. All of the schools listed below have been sent Super Scientist certificates and pencils in recognition of the great work they have done. Schools who entered the most data have been sent additional seeds to plant. The runners up received gift vouchers and the winning schools are to be awarded an extra special prize for their class. 

Schools who entered the Bulbcast competition have all been sent a special clapper board, with the winner and runner up receiving equipment to help them with future film projects. A compilation of their fantastic videos can be found at the bottom of this page. 

Professor Plant would like to thank all the schools that contributed to making this year’s investigation a success.

Enillwyr / Winners:

Cymru / Wales: 

Ysgol Tycroes

Lloegr / England: 

Stanford in the Vale Primary

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Windyknowe Primary

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

St Mary’s Marguiresbridge Primary

Yn Ail / Runners up:

Cymru / Wales: 

Pil Primary School

Lloegr / England: 

Our Lady of the Assumption Primary

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Gavinburn Primary 

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

Irvenstown Primary

Cydnabyddiaeth Arbennig / Special Recognition:

Cymru / Wales: 

Forden CiW School

Ysgol Mynydd Bychan

Upper Rhymney Primary

Ysgol Frongoch

Bwlchgwyn School

Cornist Park Primary

Ysgol Gymraeg Morswyn

Blaendulais Primary School

Bryn Deri Primary

Ysgol Porth y Felin

Ysgol Tir Morfa

Rhayader Primary School

Trelai Primary

Plasnewydd Primary School

Henllys Church in Wales School

Ysgol Gymuned Llannerch-y-medd

Marlborough Primary School

Trellech Primary

Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tonyrefail

Lloegr / England: 

Brookhouse Primary School

Cedars Primary School

St Anthony's RC Primary School

Wensley Fold CE Primary Academy

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Blacklands Primary School

Leslie Primary School

Wellshot Primary School

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

St John The Baptist Primary 

St John's Primary School

Clod Uchel / Highly Commended

Cymru / Wales: 

Ysgol Pennant

Ysgol San Sior

Ysgol Llanddulas

Ysgol Penmachno

Ysgol Gynradd Dafen Primary 

Ysgol Gymraeg Aberystwyth

Ysgol Pentreuchaf

Ysgol Gynradd Creigiau

Lloegr / England: 

St John's CE Primary School

St Margaret Mary's RC Primary 

Summerhill Primary Academy

Sylvester Primary Academy

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Doonfoot Primary School

Langbank Primary School

Livingston Village Primary 

Logan Primary School

Newmains Primary School

St Conval's Primary School

Swinton Primary School

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

Ballyholland Primary School

Clonalig Primary School

Dromore Central Primary School

Grange Primary School 

Lisbellaw Primary School

Our Lady's & St. Mochuas Primary 

Scarva Primary School

St Mary's Primary School - Newry

St Teresa's Primary School

Gwyddonwyr Gwych / Super Scientists

Cymru / Wales: 

St. Michael's RC Primary School

Ysgol Pen y Fro

St Mary's Church In Wales School

Blackwood Pimary 

Bryn Celyn Primary

Ysgol Ffordd Dyffryn

St Joseph's Cathedral Primary 

Peterston super Ely CiW Primary 

Sketty Primary School

Alway Primary School

Ysgol Gynradd Llandegfan

Archbishop Rowan Williams Church in Wales Primary 

Mountain Lane Primary

NPTC Newtown College

Danygraig Primary School

Lloegr / England: 

Didsbury CE Primary School

Gorton Primary School

Grange Primary School

Griffin Park Primary School

Holy Souls RC Primary School

St Alban's RC Primary School

St Mary's RC Primary- Manchester

St Stephen's CE Primary School

Temple Meadow Primary School

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Alloway Primary School

Meldrum Primary School

Our Lady and St Francis Primary 

Our Lady of the Annunciation Primary 

Our Lady's RC Primary School

St Brendan's Primary School

St Mary's Primary School

Underbank Primary School

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

Cortamlet Primary School

Mullavilly Primary School

St John's Eglish Primary School

St Patrick's Primary -Eskra

Cyfranwyr / Contributors

Cymru / Wales: 

Langstone Primary School

Ysgol Llanychllwydog

Carreghofa School

Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary 

Eveswell Primary School

Ysgol Y Berllan Deg

Montgomery Church in Wales School

Ysgol Gynradd Cwrt Henri

St Cadoc's R C Primary School

Bodnant Community School 

Ysgol Bryn Pennant

Lloegr / England: 

Anchorsholme Academy

Daisyfield Primary School

Eaton Valley Primary School

Eden Primary School

Ferndale Primary School

Heald Place Primary School

St Anne's Catholic Primary 

St Anne's RC Primary School

St Barnabas C of E Primary Academy

St Bernadette's Catholic Primary 

St Johns C of E Primary 

St Kentigern's RC Primary 

Yr Alban / Scotland: 

Our Lady of Peace Primary

Scotstoun Primary School

Straiton Primary School

Gogledd Iwerddon / Northern Ireland: 

Mountnorris Primary School

St Anthony's Primary

St Mary's Primary - Derrytrasna

St Mary's Primary School - Dungannon

St Oliver Plunkett's Primary School

Tandragee Primary School

Bulbcast:

Enillwyr/Winners: 

Langbank Primary

Yn Ail / Runners-up: 

St Mary’s Maghery

Cyfranwyr / Contributors: 

Cortamlet Primary

Our Lady of the Assumption

Our Lady & St Mochua

Livingston Primary

Windyknowe Primary

Ysgol Pentre Uchaf

Thanks again Bulb Buddies,                                                      

Professor Plant

One of the first and largest parts of our redevelopment project has been the work of moving most of our collections off site to a nearby collections centre. This was necessary in order to ensure their safety whilst renovation and building work are carried out on site.

Work began back in July 2024 with the appointment of 2 new Collections Assistants - Osian Thomas and Mathew Williams - who joined Curator Cadi Iolen, to begin the enormous task of itemising, labelling and packing up each object in the Museum. 

Here they tell us a bit more about what was involved in 'moving a museum'. 

"There are over 8,000 objects in our collection ...this was an enormous task!" Cadi Iolen, Curator

The National Slate Museum is housed in the original engineering  workshops at Gilfach Ddu, and was opened in 1972 following a dedicated campaign by the community to keep it in tact as a Museum. Although the majority of our collection was documented, quite a large amount wasn't and so we've had to go back to basics and document and tag everything in the Museum so that everything's recorded. 

"It's a process that has never been done in the Slate Museum before, When the museum opened in 1972 it wasn't in a new building with white walls, and people bringing things in to display. It was sometimes difficult to know what was here originally and what has been transported here by the museum staff over all the years. But of course that has also given us a different kind of museum which is so unique and beautiful."      Cadi Iolen, Curator

From Slate dressing tables to bellows, blocks and tackles to dressing machines, the sheer scale of the project has been immense and surprising at times. From the smallest wooden pattern to our much-loved locomotive, UNA, the Gilfach Ddu workshops are now a very different place to what people are used to seeing during a normal visit. As we’ve moved through the Museum we’ve made some surprising discoveries. 

"I found a box of tools owned by the Pattern family who exclusively worked up in the Pattern Loft. The box had been hidden underneath bag of patterns for years. We’re so happy that we came across them as they – like many items at the Museum – seem to have been left as they were when the workshops complex was closed in 1969!" Mathew Williams, Collections Assistant

The Foundry was another room which needed to be recorded before items being moved. The massive sand area in the middle of the room was once filled with casting boxes and metal equipment and the walls were adorned with wooden patterns so big that it is difficult to grasp their size until they eventually came off the wall – each one revealing their legacy imprint on the paintwork behind them.

"While examining the building, we uncovered several hidden graffiti pieces. In the Volunteers’ Loft, we found WW2-era drawings of war leaders, previously hidden behind storage racks. I made a personal discovery while tagging tools on the crane in the Foundry. My grandfather, Gwynfryn Thomas, worked there as a Moulder, and I noticed “GT” etched into the woodwork. To my surprise, I counted nine of hiinitials on the crane—a touching connection to my family history." Osian Thomas, Curatorial Assistant

We closed the Museum at the end of October 2024 and in November the removals began! This was challenging on many levels, from huge items which needed their very own transport to moving all the tiny items in storage boxes. Working with Restore Harrow Green – an expert removals company specializing in large scale library, museum and office moves – things were relocated very quickly and efficiently. 

One of the first rooms to be emptied was the  Volunteers Loft (the last room in the pattern loft) which was full of Conserved Collections of wooden patterns and other objects. The Foundry, Smithy, Caban all followed and room by room, the museum slowly transformed from a place full of objects where space was at a premium, to suddenly feeling eerily empty.

Then it was time to move the larger objects on the Museum’s main yard. Who would’ve thought at the beginning of this redevelopment journey that we’d see one of our locomotive boilers suspended over the museum yard by a crane on a Thursday morning? 

"It’s been a real learning journey for us, one which has made us realize and appreciate the sheer scale and variety of the Museum’s collections. It’s also been an incredibly rewarding journey, handling objects that were last held by the workmen here and now seeing them all neatly organised and stored in the new collections Store."   Osian Thomas, Curatorial Assistant.

This is just the end of the first chapter of this large redevelopment project.  

The objects have now found a new temporary home at our new Collections centre in Llandegai near Bangor. 

We're planning open days there soon ...but we'll tell you all about that amazing space in the next blog!