Becky Jefcoate

Becky Jefcoate is a cultural leader who specialises in wellbeing, co-creation and emotional connection, helping museums design experiences that spark joy, belonging and genuine participation. Becky is currently Practitioner Research Associate, Collections and Wellbeing at the Fitzwilliam Museum, where she co-created Happy Place, an immersive wellbeing pilot for young adults that reimagined galleries as soft, sensory spaces of refuge and play.

With over 25 years’ experience as a Director, CEO and creative strategist across the UK cultural sector, she has led major transformations at organisations including the Cartoon Museum, Museum of London, National Trust and English Heritage, and has worked internationally on culture, health and inclusive practice. Becky is driven by a simple belief: museums can help people feel better – and everyone deserves a place to belong.

Becky Jefcoate will be speaking at the Museum Wellness Summit 2026 :

Every Museum Needs a Happy Place: Designing for Wellbeing, Belonging and Joy

What if museums offered emotional shelter as well as cultural enrichment? Happy Place is an immersive wellbeing experiment co-created with young adults at the Fitzwilliam Museum. In a world of stress, speed and overwhelm, the project explored whether a museum could become a genuine refuge-sparking joy, calm and connection through sensory design, play and co-creation. Join us to discover how yoga, origami, hammocks, smellscapes, and cardboard trees came together to create a “soft space” for rest and belonging. Expect honest learning, hopeful provocations and practical ideas to help your own museum support wellbeing-not someday, but now.