FAQ & terms and conditions

We have been running Thames foreshore education sessions for 33 years a have long-standing agreement with the PLA (Port of London Authority) to conduct school, university, adult and family sessions on the foreshore, you therefore do not need your own permit on one of our sessions.

We do everything we can to keep our visitors safe and we have a very low accident record over many years. The Trust has public liability insurance, a child protection policy and we comply with Health and Safety Executive regulations. We follow ‘good practice’ for operating procedures and staff training. All staff have enhanced DBS checks.

You will receive an order confirmation and your ticketing from [email protected] on purchasing your tickets. If you still cannot find it, please contact the box office by calling them on 020 7030 3300. Phone lines are open Mon–Fri between 9.30am – 1.30pm & 2.30–5pm.

This experience is catered toward children aged 12 and up. Children over 12 are welcome, however their safety remains your responsibility at all times.

The only way to attend one of our events is via ticket. If you cannot see a ticket for sale, it is most likely that the event is sold out.

For health and safety reasons and to comply with our insurance, we cannot exceed the maximum number of 25 participants. Please do not bring a friend with you on spec as they most probably will not be able to join you.

Waitlists are not currently available for this event.

Booking is essential and limited to 25 people. Children must be accompanied by an adult (minimum age for children is 12 years) with a maximum of 2 children per adult.

Please note the following before booking:

• Refund requests must be made at least 48 hours before the event takes place.
• To cancel tickets, you must email box office or call them on 020 7030 3300. Phone lines are open Mon–Fri between 9.30am – 1.30pm & 2.30–5pm.
• You will receive a full refund if your cancelation request is received seven or more days before the event.
• You will receive a 50% refund if your request is received with less than seven days before the event – this includes cancellations concerning illness, transport or unfavourable weather.
• In the event that Thames Explorer Trust is forced to cancel, you will receive a full refund. We'll endeavour to get in touch with you with as much notice as possible via the contact details provided in your booking. If you should wish to still visit the exhibition in spite of the tour being cancelled, you can arrange this with our box office team or museum staff on the day.

Please also see the section below “What if the weather is bad?”

Very few of our outings are cancelled due to bad weather and we go out in a mixture of rain and shine, so do not automatically assume that an event is cancelled because of a weather forecast.

If we feel it is necessary to cancel an event, we will endeavour to contact you via the details you left on booking, therefore keep an eye on your text messages and emails near the event. On very few occasions, we have been forced to cancel an event at the point of entering the foreshore. Disappointing as this may be, your guide will have good experience of foreshore safety (and of the limits of our insurance) so please respect their decision.

As a rough guide, these are the main weather conditions where we may need to contact you:

1. Snow and ice, making the ground treacherous
2. Heavy fog, severely restricting visibility of the group by our staff
3. Lightning
4. Amber weather warnings
5. Yellow weather warnings, although we tend to go out in these. For a yellow weather warning, we may need to use a different foreshore, for instance because step access might be safer.

After visiting London Museum Docklands for the Secrets of the Thames exhibition, your Thames Explorer Tour guide will meet you outside the museum entrance 30 minutes before the start of your foreshore tour. Staff at the museum will help to guide you on the day.

You will make your way to the foreshore with your guide. Please note, there are no public toilets at the second location, other than those available at the discretion of the local pubs.

Please find more information on timings and directions on your order confirmation and on your ticket. If you can't find this, please contact the Box Office.

Please check the meeting point carefully at the time of booking. TET staff should be wearing a yellow high vis vest with the Thames Explorer logo, otherwise look for a group of people at the meeting point.

Our staff will deliver an introductory talk at the meeting point, or very nearby, which lasts approximately 30-40 minutes so check this first.

The talk not only orientates you with your surroundings, local history and the type of artefacts you might find, it crucially offers essential safety advice.

If you miss the safety talk and the group has departed, please find a museum staff member.

The meeting point is at the museum and staff will be able to direct you on the day. You should have plenty of time to meet your guide. If nobody is at the meeting point, or in case of late arrival, please talk to museum staff.

Waterborne diseases can be a risk therefore it is important that those with open cuts or eczema have them covered and that all participants keep their hands away from their faces and refrain from eating or drinking on the foreshore – children should be closely supervised.

You should wash your hands thoroughly afterwards and especially before eating and drinking. If you prefer to wear waterproof gloves then please bring these with you.

This is a bacterial infection transmitted through contact with animal urine and contaminated water. There is a small possibility of contracting this disease when in contact with river water. In most cases the disease is only mild but in serious cases it can be life-threatening and symptoms should not be ignored. Early symptoms are flu-like and include headaches, chills, high temperature, vomiting and muscle pains.

If you experience any of these symptoms within 3 weeks of visiting the river foreshore, inform your doctor, referencing river water and Weil’s Disease. Tests are available and early treatment can limit the severity of the infection.

The ground can be uneven and slippery and the amount of mud can vary. The general advice is to wear either Wellington boots, walking boots, old shoes or trainers. Note that your footwear is liable to become muddy and scuffed. No crocs or open toed sandals.

Be aware that the foreshore is very exposed and can be subject to much colder or hotter conditions than the rest of the city.

Beyond the fact that some people do not like dogs, there is a crucial reason not to bring your dog: many dogs like nothing more than a swim, however, the current in the Thames is fast and your dog will likely be swept away. This may in turn endanger you as you try to rescue them, therefore, we ask you not to bring your dog.

Following the PLA’s regulations, if you do you not have a permit you are not allowed to remove items from the foreshore. You can visit the foreshore with our permit, but our permit does not allow you to remove objects.

If you have your own permit and wish to remove objects, you are still subject to legal (and moral) considerations – it is against the PLA’s rules for anyone to make a profit from objects found on the foreshore.

Assuming you have a permit you have the right to remove an object. However, on our walks, we request that you do not unless it is absolutely necessary. Removal of objects on our walks by permit holders tend to create bad feelings with non-permit holders.

Both permit holders and non-permit holders are under obligation to report objects of interest to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) for assessment. On finding something of interest, please report it to the Thames Explorer leader. They will ask you to complete a short form to log the find. The form tells you how to go about reporting the object as well as allowing Thames Explorer to monitor the reporting process.

Having submitted an object to the PAS for consideration, the object will either be retained by the museum or given back to you.

Any object over 50 years old requires an export licence.

The Footsteps of Mudlark Tours are run by Thames Explorer Trust, a registered charity with charity number 1010903. References to “we” and “us” in these terms and conditions are references to Thames Explorer Trust.

By signing up to go on a mudlark tour, you are agreeing to these terms and conditions.

1 Sign up

1.1 To sign up to go on a mudlark tour, you must complete the online London Museum booking journey and you must book your date and timeslot with us.

1.2 By purchasing the tickets, you are confirming that you have read and agreed to abide by these terms and conditions.

1.3 Your place on a tour will only be confirmed once you have agreed to these terms and conditions, paid and received a confirmation email from us confirming the time and date of the tour.

1.4 If you are booking and paying on behalf of any other person, you are also confirming that they have read and will abide by these terms and conditions. By participating in the mudlark tour, all other participants are indicating their agreement to these terms and conditions.

2 The tour

2.1 We will provide you with a 2-hour guided tour of the foreshore with an experienced Thames Explorer guide who will lead the group through the process of looking for and identifying artefacts of historical significance.

3 Fitness to take attend the tour & health and safety

3.1 You must ensure that the booking form is completed fully on behalf of yourself and any other attendees that you are completing the form for, including in relation to any medical conditions, special needs or mobility issues aIecting attendees which could impact on the tour.

3.2 If you provide any details of medical conditions, special needs or mobility issues, we will contact you to discuss how we will deliver the tour, to see how we can help to make the tour safe for you, if possible.

3.3 Notwithstanding clause 3.2, by agreeing to come on the tour, you acknowledge the physical demands of taking part in a tour and confirm that you are aware of the physical and medical risks involved. The ground at the foreshore can be loose, uneven and slippery. Tours take place in all weather conditions. We can provide you with more information about the tour and the physical demands if this is helpful. Anyone unsure of their physical ability to take part in the tour must seek medical advice from their General Practitioner prior to the tour.

3.4 All attendees must ensure that they are suIiciently fit and healthy to come on the tour and must ensure that they have proper clothing, footwear and equipment on the day of the tour.

3.5 We cannot accommodate groups of more than 30 people. We may specify a lower number than this at any time, at our discretion, for example if we needed to limit numbers to ensure the safety of attendees with special needs.

3.6 Infants and children under 5 are not permitted to attend tours for safety reasons.

3.7 You are responsible for the safety and conduct of all children on the tour. To try and ensure that this is manageable on every tour, please do not bring more than three children per adult to supervise them.

3.8 You must comply with and ensure that any children or other persons you are responsible for comply with any and all reasonable instructions that we may provide to you from time to time – whether in advance of or during a tour.

3.9 Whilst we will use our reasonable endeavours to accommodate any special requirements, we reserve the right to refuse a booking if we are unable to accommodate the particular needs of the person(s) concerned or we have a residual concern relating to the health and safety of anyone on the tour arising out of a person’s attendance.

3.10 If we have a health and safety concern during the tour, whether arising out of your conduct or otherwise, we reserve the right to require you and anyone in your party to leave the tour. Refunds will not be provided in these circumstances.

4 Artefacts & conduct

4.1 You must not take artefacts away from the foreshore – this is as per the Port of London Authority’s rules. You may take photographs of artefacts.

4.2 You must not engage in any form of digging or scraping on the foreshore. There are a great many surface artefacts to discover.

4.3 You must conduct yourself reasonably and politely when on the tour and in accordance with any reasonable instructions we give. If you do not, we reserve the right to require you and anyone in your party to leave the tour. Refunds will not be provided in these circumstances.

5 Complaints

5.1 If you have a complaint relating to a tour, please contact the Trust Director [email protected] We will use our reasonable endeavours to respond to you and resolve the situation.

6 Cancellation

6.1 If you wish to cancel yours or your party’s attendance on a tour, you must inform us at least 48 hours in advance by email us at box office or call on 020 7030 3300. Phone lines are open Mon–Fri between 9.30am – 1.30pm & 2.30–5pm. You will receive a full refund if your cancelation request is received seven or more days before the event. You will receive a 50% refund if your request is received with less than seven days before the event – this includes cancellations concerning illness, transport or unfavourable weather.

6.2 If we have to cancel a tour, we shall provide you with as much notice as we reasonably can and we will provide you with a full refund or an alternative date for a tour, at your option.

7 Liability

7.1 Attendance on a tour is at your own risk.

7.2 We only provide our tours for personal, private enjoyment and not for business or commercial use. We shall not be liable for any business losses suIered by you, including but not limited to loss of profit, loss of business or loss of business opportunity.

7.3 You warrant that you are solely responsible for your actions and the actions of persons under your care on the tour. Subject to clause 7.5, we shall not be responsible or liable for any injury or illness or loss or damage to property suIered by you or a person under your care as a result of your participation on a tour.

7.4 Subject to clause 7.5, you agree to hold harmless, indemnify and reimburse us for any liability, costs, damages or expenses (including legal and professional fees) incurred by us in connection with any accident, loss, damage or injury arising out of your attendance on the tour.

7.5 Nothing in these terms excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

8 Force majeure

8.1 Force Majeure Event means any circumstance not within our reasonable control, including, without limitation, natural disasters, extreme weather conditions, epidemics or pandemics, terrorist attacks or any law or any action taken by a government or public authority.

8.2 Provided that we have complied with clause 8.3, if we are hindered or delayed in or from performing any of our obligations under these terms and conditions or in relation to the tour in any way, we shall not be in breach of these terms and conditions or otherwise liable for any such failure or delay in the performance of such obligations

8.3 We shall:

8.3.1 as soon as reasonably practicable after the start of the Force Majeure Event, notify you of the event, its likely potential duration and the eIect it will have on our ability to provide the tour; and

8.3.2 use reasonable endeavours to mitigate the eIect of the event on the tour.

8.4 If the Force Majeure Event prevents or hinders the performance of the tour on the planned date we may terminate this agreement on notice. In these circumstances, we will provide you with a full refund or an alternative date for the tour.

9 General

9.1 When you complete the booking form and buy a ticket you will need to provide us with certain personal details to enable us to process your request and, if applicable, deliver the tour to you in due course. We will collect, hold and use your personal data in accordance with data protection law and our privacy policy.

9.2 Each of the paragraphs of these terms operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining paragraphs will remain in full force and eIect.

9.3 No failure or delay by us to exercise our rights under these terms and conditions mean that we have waived such rights, and waiver by us of a breach of any provision of these terms and conditions means that we will waive any subsequent breach of the same or any other provision.

9.4 Each party irrevocably agrees that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim (including non-contractual disputes or claims) arising out of or in connection with this agreement or its subject matter or formation.