Nearly 1,000 years after the Bayeux Tapestry was made, children across the UK are being invited to imagine how its missing final scene might have looked — with one important twist: this time, the story moves beyond conquest and bloodshed towards a better future.
Art Explora and English Heritage have announced Beyond the Battle, a free nationwide textile competition for Key Stage 2 pupils aged 7–11, coinciding with the historic return of the Bayeux Tapestry to England.
The challenge takes its starting point from one of the great unanswered questions surrounding the 70-metre-long work. The Tapestry as it survives ends abruptly, with its final section — believed to have depicted William the Conqueror’s coronation — lost.
Rather than attempting an historical reconstruction, Beyond the Battle will hand the ending over to a new generation.
Working together as a class, pupils will be asked to design and stitch their own final panel, imagining a better tomorrow and the people, actions and values that could help create it.
The project arrives as the Bayeux Tapestry returns to England for the first time in nearly 1,000 years. Created around 1072–77, probably by English embroiderers, it will be displayed at the British Museum from 10th September 2026 to 11th July 2027.
Demand has already been huge, with public tickets for the exhibition through to the end of December 2026 selling out within days.
For Beyond the Battle, however, you won’t need a British Museum ticket — or even need to be anywhere near London.
Participating schools across the UK will receive free learning resources created by embroidery artist and educator Jessica Grady, whose own practice makes extensive use of unconventional and recycled materials including plastic waste, packaging, metal washers and stripped electrical cable.
That approach means pupils won’t require specialist textile equipment. Materials already sitting in the classroom art cupboard, recycling bin or craft box can become part of their 21st-century continuation of an artwork begun almost a millennium ago.
Jemima Montagu, Director of Art Explora UK, said:
“The Bayeux Tapestry is storytelling in thread — a thousand-year-old narrative built stitch by stitch, made when people read pictures rather than words. Beyond the Battle lets children discover that craft for themselves: exploring the history, learning the embroiderers’ techniques, then telling a story of their own.”
The programme will combine history with art and design, encouraging children to explore the Norman Conquest before developing collaborative stories and translating them into textiles.
There’s a rather special prize, too.
Winning classes will receive a fully funded trip to London to see the Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum, where tickets have otherwise proved difficult to secure, as well as the opportunity to visit the site of the Battle of Hastings at 1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield, or another Norman site cared for by English Heritage.
Runner-up classes will receive a funded visit to their nearest English Heritage Norman site, while winning works will be included in a special exhibition. Each winning school will also receive a bespoke textile artwork by Grady.
Iona Keen, Head of Learning and Interpretation at English Heritage, said:
“1066 is the most famous date in English history, and at Battle Abbey we look after the very ground where the battle was fought. Visitors arrive knowing about the arrow in Harold’s eye, but what stays with them is standing above the site of the battlefield and realising real people were here.”
She added:
“Beyond the Battle connects that place to the object that made the story famous and then hands the story over to the next generation to continue.”
The project also coincides with the International Year of the Normans in 2027, marking 1,000 years since the birth of William the Conqueror.
Beyond the Battle launches in late September 2026, with full competition dates, eligibility, judging and entry details to follow.
For further information, you can email: learninguk@artexplora.org
Ahead of the of the official programme launch, schools can start their learning journey by clicking the links below to find English Heritage learning resources and information about school visits.
1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield
Almost a millennium after embroiderers stitched the Norman Conquest into linen, Britain’s schoolchildren get to decide what happens next.
About
Art Explora expands access to the arts across Europe through innovative touring, digital and creative programmes. We work with artists, communities and cultural organisations to remove barriers to participation and make the arts accessible to all. We ignite curiosity, create together, and connect people — because arts and culture inspire ideas and enrich lives.
Art Explora’s programmes extend across Europe and beyond. The annual European Award champions arts projects across Europe that demonstrate innovative approaches to public engagement and participation. The Award Ceremony will be held in the UK this November for the first time. Art Explora’s fleet of Mobile Museum trucks tour across UK and France, bringing exhibitions of art from major public collections such as Centre Pompidou and Tate directly into the heart of communities. In 2027, Art Explora will launch the first dedicated UK Mobile Museum, funded by DCMS. At the heart of Art Explora is their community programme, taking conversations about art into care settings through Arts at Home, supported by volunteers. In the UK, Art Explora also gives travel grants to schools to take children from the most deprived areas of the country on school trips to museums, where they play and learn through an exciting digital adventure game called Time Odyssey.
Art Explora was founded by Frédéric Jousset in France in 2019 and in the UK in 2021. Art Explora UK is a registered UK charity no. 1202489. www.artexplora.org
