PLYMOUTH — The Box in Plymouth received the 2026 Art Fund Museum of the Year award during a ceremony on London's Cutty Sark. The award includes a prize of £120,000.

Broadcaster June Sarpong, one of the judges for the award, presented the prize to Victoria Pomery, chief executive of The Box. The ceremony occurred onboard the Cutty Sark at Royal Museums Greenwich in London.

Sarpong stated, "What stood out so strongly with the Box was the sense of pride and connection it has created across Plymouth." She added, "From local groups such as the Windrush community to its partnerships with the university, it is a museum that genuinely belongs to the people it serves."

The Box opened in 2020 following a £48 million capital investment. Since its opening, it has welcomed more than 1.3 million visitors and engaged with 89% of Plymouth's schools. The institution holds collections comprising over 2 million artworks, objects, and archival materials. A report indicated that The Box generated more than £100 million in health and wellbeing benefits and boosted Plymouth's economy by £244 million.

Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director and chair of the judges, said, "They've become more and more ambitious, inclusive and audience-focused." She also said, "And they continue to innovate, becoming more and more loved and valued by their audiences and their principal funder, the local authority."

The Box's 2025 program included the exhibitions When Will We Be Good Enough? by Osman Yousefzada and Jyll Bradley's Running and Returning. Upcoming exhibitions at The Box include Echoes of Us, featuring works from the government art collection, and Gillian Ayres: A Life in Colour. Jeremy Deller's event Hello Sailor! was developed with The Box as part of his project The Triumph of Art for the National Gallery.

The other finalists for the award included The Fitzwilliam Museum, The National Gallery, Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery, and V&A East Storehouse. Each of these four finalist museums will receive £20,000.