The Science and Industry Museum has announced plans for new galleries and improvements to its site.

A new Wonderlab gallery is being planned to inspire children and the next generation. This is planned to open in late 2027, and the museum is looking for architects and lead designers to submit first-stage tenders.

Feasibility work will also start on a new gallery and a static rail experience for the 1830 station, which is the world’s first inter-urban passenger railway and the world’s oldest surviving passenger railway station. This is set to reopen ahead of the London – Manchester railway bicentenary in 2030.

The first stage of work has already taken place on the station, but feasibility work will now aim to develop a visitor experience that tells the story of the railway, and a static locomotive will tell the story of the Liverpool to Manchester Railway.

Feasibility work will also start on a new Technicians interactive gallery.

Regarding access improvements, feasibility work will start to connect the site to Manchester and Slaford via Walter Street and then to Aviva Studios.

By the end of this year, 50% of the site will have been repaired or renewed in the last five years thanks to a £40m investment, charitable trusts and foundations.

“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.”

Science and Industry Museum Director Sally MacDonald OBE