As the museum’s first phase of repair and improvement nears completion including the re-opening of the Power Hall in summer 2025, the Science and Industry Museum announces plans for new permanent galleries and improvements to its globally significant site.
A new Wonderlab gallery is being planned to inspire children to imagine, experiment and play like an inventor.
Feasibility work will begin this year on a new free Technicians interactive gallery for 11-16-year-olds to inspire tomorrow’s technicians.
Following extensive external repairs, feasibility work will also begin this year on a new gallery and static rail experience for the historic 1830 station (the world’s first inter-urban passenger railway and world’s oldest surviving passenger railway station) set to re-open ahead of the Liverpool-Manchester railway bicentenary in 2030.
Feasibility work will also commence in the near future on landscaping and improving access in and around the museum’s Lower Yard to enable a landmark science playground and open the museum site to connect to Manchester and Salford via Water Street and through to Aviva Studios, Liverpool Road and Castlefield.
new Wonderlab gallery is in the planning to be one of the most spectacular, interactive science galleries of its kind. Inspiring children to think, experiment and play like inventors, it will pay homage to Manchester’s rich history of science and invention and the museum site which explores ideas that change the world. Planned to open late 2027, the museum is now seeking an architect and lead designer. An open competition to design Wonderlab opened on 21 February, with architectural and exhibition design practices invited to submit first stage tender returns by 24 March on the Science Museum Group’s Tenders website. The successful designer will be able to draw on the architectural features and history of the museum’s site, reflect the creativity and innovation synonymous with Manchester and enhance the feeling of wonder and awe for the museum’s target audiences of ages 4-10 (plus access for early years) to enjoy.
Science and Industry Museum Director Sally MacDonald OBE says
“Ahead of the Power Hall re-opening this summer and the completion of a mammoth amount of repair work to our wonderful historic buildings, we can now look forward to future compelling galleries that will help us tell the stories of the world’s first industrial city and ideas that change the world. It’s our mission to open the potential of the whole of this globally significant industrial heritage site – to bring all of it back into use and to celebrate it through a journey that allows visitors to explore and understand how the buildings and structures that the museum cares for connect to the collections and stories they contain. We want to create more access through the site and make the most of the museum’s outdoor spaces for everyone who lives in and visits Manchester and provide more opportunities to inspire the next generation of innovators, thinkers, creators, technicians and scientists whose ideas will continue to change the world.”
