This summer, ADS is hosting its inaugural Charity Cycle, bringing together members from across the UK for an unforgettable six-day ride. Over the course of this event, riders will swap their laptops for lycra, embarking on a 478-mile journey from Scotland to Farnborough.

We reached out to our friends at the National Museum of the Royal Navy who are one of our five incredible charities to discuss more about their key priorities, challenges and support for the Charity Cycle…

Who are The National Museum of the Royal Navy?

The National Museum of the Royal Navy was founded in 2009 with a vision to be the world’s most inspiring Naval Museum, Linking Navy to Nation. Our mission is to inspire enjoyment and engagement with the continuing history and modern role of the Royal Navy and the Royal Navy’s impact on shaping both our nation and the modern world. On 28th June 1911, The Dockyard Museum opened in Portsmouth, growing and evolving into the Royal Naval Museum, which then became a part of the newly formed National Museum of the Royal Navy in September 2009. The Museum changed its name to The National Museum of the Royal Navy, as the overall organisation grew to also encompass The Royal Marines Museum, The Royal Navy Submarine Museum, the Fleet Air Arm Museum and Explosion! Museum of Naval Firepower. In 2015, we opened First World War Monitor HMS M.33 to the public, and in 2016 we added HMS Caroline in Belfast, and the Hartlepool Maritime Experience and HMS Trincomalee to the National Museum of the Royal Navy family.

What are the biggest challenges your organisation faces right now?

Funding remains one of the biggest challenges we face. We have to raise 80% of our income from ticket sales, corporate partnerships, donations and charitable trust grants, in a competitive marketplace.

How does your work contribute to making the UK a better place?

The story of the Royal Navy is the story of UK, linked to all our history. We bring to life untold stories and tales of the heroics and sacrifice of the people who served our country with such bravery, keeping their memories and legacy alive. Plus, culture plays a huge part of out everyday lives and caring for our collection today, will enable it to be enjoyed by future generations.

What would you say to someone considering making a donation?

At the National Museum of the Royal Navy, we are proud to be the custodians of incredible vessels like HMS Victory, HMS Caroline, HMS Trincomalee, and HMS Alliance. We also have amazing aircraft, including the de Havilland Vampire flown by Captain ‘Winkle’ Brown. We also hold an enormous collection including personal items, naval artefacts, and artwork. Donations make it possible for us to bring our museum to life, telling the stories of the people who made up our Royal Navy, commemorating their service and preserving their history. Across our six sites, our work is complex and constant. We care for some of the most important and famous ships ever to sail the seas. Preserving HMS Victory, HMS Warrior, and HMS Trincomalee – each a symbol of their era – requires specialist teams and painstaking work. The same is true for HMS Alliance, the last remaining British Second World War submarine, and HMS Caroline, a rare survivor from the First World War. Each vessel and each exhibit is an irreplaceable piece of history. Their conservation is a painstaking endeavour by expert teams, who work tirelessly to ensure their survival for future generations. you’ll help safeguard the collections, ships, and aircraft that tell the epic tale of the Navy. Donations ensure that iconic vessels like HMS Victory, HMS Warrior, and HMS Alliance – symbols of Britain’s naval might – are preserved for the generations.

Can you share a success story that highlights the impact of your work?

NMRN prides itself on saving naval history for the nation and as such in 2020, we were able to save the Armada Maps from being sold abroad. Since Queen Elizabeth the First’s reign, they had mainly been in private hands and when we discovered they were to be sold abroad we knew we had to step in to save them for the nation. We petitioned the government to allow an export bar to be placed on all 10 maps, to allow us time to secure the funding needed to purchase them and keep them accessible to the public. We underwent a 6-week fundraising campaign which included a crowd fund appeal, charitable trusts grants and even a donation from a Rolling Stone! In 2023, we were able to open an exciting exhibition showcasing them, with thousands of people visiting.

What challenges do the communities you serve face, and how does your charity help?

Some of our museums are close to areas of social depravation and means that many local people don’t have the opportunity to visit our sites. In Portsmouth, we are trying to rectify this, by giving children who are in receipt of free school meals, in certain postcode areas, the chance to apply for an annual family pass to the Historic Dockyard. This comes at a cost to the museum, but we feel it is the right thing to do for our communities. Free entry for serving personell – getting them in front of their history.

What are your charity’s goals for the next year?

We are going to be launching a new strategy later this year so I can’t answer this in much detail but some of our main goals are to open the Royal Marines Experience Museum, on time, in June 2026, to increase the rollout of our STEM programme, reaching more children and inspiring them into STEM careers, to continue our major conservation projects on HMS Victory and the aircraft Barracuda and to start telling more stories from our collection to really bring it to life.

What does being a beneficiary of the ADS Charity Cycle 2025 mean to your organisation?

It means a great deal to NMRN, it is only with the support of organisations, such as ADS, that we can continue our work. We have to generate approx 80% of our income through ticket sales, donations, corporate partnerships and charitable trust grants, so every partnership is precious to us.

What would you say to the cyclists taking on this challenge to support your charity?

We want to thank them for their commitment and dedication to taking part in this epic challenge. We wish them all the very best of luck and we will be there to wave you off in Scotland and we will be there in Farnborough to welcome you back!

Learn more about The National Museum of the Royal Navy.