The Museum of Transology has been shortlisted for a prestigious Museums Change Lives Award following a year that has seen the community-led organisation expand its reach across the UK and Ireland while launching the world's first digital museum dedicated to trans histories.
The museum has been named on the shortlist for the Best Small Museum Project Award at the Museums Change Lives Awards 2026, which celebrate museums that have made a significant difference to the lives of their audiences and communities.
The recognition comes just months after the Museum's major exhibition TRANSCESTRY was Highly Commended at the Museums + Heritage Awards 2026, marking a second major accolade for the organisation this year.
Founded in 2014, the Museum of Transology has become one of the world's largest collections of trans, non-binary and intersex material culture. Over the past three years, the project has worked with communities and cultural institutions to establish 15 permanent trans collections in museums, archives and galleries across the UK and Ireland.
In total, 467 new objects have been collected as part of the initiative, helping to ensure trans stories are preserved within public collections for future generations.
The museum has also launched a fully searchable online collections database, creating what it describes as the world's first trans digital museum. The archive now contains more than 3,000 objects donated by over 1,000 people, alongside personal testimonies documenting trans lives in contributors' own words.
The latest milestone follows the success of TRANSCESTRY, staged at Central Saint Martins in 2025. The exhibition brought together more than 1,000 objects and contributions from over 1,000 community curators, attracting almost 14,000 visitors during its seven-weekend run.
Alongside its expanding collections, the Museum of Transology is also strengthening its role in research and advocacy. Founder and curator E-J Scott has recently published an article in the Museums Association's Museums Journal exploring the potential impact of artificial intelligence on preserving marginalised histories that are often underrepresented in traditional archives.
Scott has also published two books during 2026, including Queering Heritage, while a podcast episode featuring the curator recently won the LGBTQ category at the Women in Podcasting Awards.
Beyond the museum itself, Scott's work with the Trans Pride Collective UK & Ireland has continued to grow. The network recently secured funding from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to stage its third annual assembly, bringing together representatives from 44 trans organisations across the UK and Ireland in what organisers described as the largest gathering of trans organisers to date.
The collective has also launched an interactive map charting trans Pride events across the UK and Ireland through the Museum of Transology's newly expanded website.
Museum representatives said the combination of permanent collections, digital archiving, research projects and community organising reflects a significant new chapter for the organisation, which began as a grassroots collecting project and has since evolved into a nationally recognised cultural institution.
The winners of the Museums Change Lives Awards 2026 will be announced at Birmingham Repertory Theatre on 3 November during the Museums Association's annual conference.
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