Wonderlab project is just the beginning for Judith

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DETAILS of one of the first stages of the National Railway Museum’s redevelopment were unveiled on February 14, in the form of the blueprint for the creation of a £5 million interactive engineering gallery – Wonderlab.

Making the announcement during the 2018 Year of Engineering and hot on the heels of Tim Peake’s spacecraft arriving in the museum in January, the museum said that the purpose-built landmark gallery would inspire young people to get hands-on and invent their own solutions to engineering challenges.

An artist’s impression of the proposed new front of the National Railway Museum at the heart of the York Central scheme. NRM

Wonderlab aims to create a wonder-filled environment where young minds can discover their own potential through building, testing and learning.

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It could include the chance to have a go at pulling a locomotive as well as exploring how fast things travel and how they move. A unique ‘tinkering’ workshop space, live demonstrations, live shows and experiments would also inspire the next generation of rail engineers.

Wonderlab will be based on the hugely successful interactive galleries created by the Science Museum Group at its Bradford and London museums. Wonderlab at the Science Museum has been described by Time Out as ‘The best thing to do in London with kids’. As well as appealing to family visitors, it is hoped that double the current number of schoolchildren – up to 80,000 – will get ‘hands-on’ in the new gallery during school visits to York.

Read more in Issue 239 of HR – on sale now!

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