People's History Museum, Manchester

Left Bank
Spinningfields
Manchester
M3 3ER
England

logo: Designated as an Outstanding Collection

Website

People's History Museum

www.phm.org.uk

E-mail

People's History Museum

info@phm.org.uk

Telephone

People's History Museum

0161 228 7212

Fax

People's History Museum

0161 237 5965

All information is supplied by the venues or providers themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.
Artist's impression of the new People's History Museum
baby changing facilities icon Food icon Guided tours icon Shop icon Study area icon Visual disability facilities icon Wheelchair access icon

The People’s History Museum tells the dramatic story of the British working class’s struggle for democracy and social justice - told at the only national museum in Manchester, the radical city where it belongs.

The museum is currently closed for a £12.5m redevelopment,
including the refurbishment of the existing Pump House and the construction of a four storey extension alongside it. The old and new buildings will be joined together by a spectacular glass walkway. From early 2010 the museum galleries, changing exhibitions, education service, Labour History Archive & Study Centre, Textile Conservation Studio, corporate facilities, café and shop will be housed in a new fantastic building.

Venue Type:

Museum, Archive

 Opening hours

*The People's History Museum is closed for a £12.5 million redevelopment, re-opening in early 2010*

The new People's History Museum opening times (from early 2010) are as follows:
Museum: everyday, 10.00-17.00
Shop: everyday, 10.00-17.00
Café: everyday, 10.00-17.00 (with extended opening hours)
Labour History Archive & Study Centre: Mon-Fri, 10.00-17.00, visits by appointment only.

Museum: closed 24, 25, 26 December, 1 January and Good Friday.
Labour History Archive & Study Centre: closed Saturdays and Sundays.

 Admission charges

Free to everyone

 General services and facilities
  • Brochure or leaflet available with directions to museum
  • Guided tours
  • Information point provided
  • Pre-booking service for groups
  • Cafeteria
  • Picnic area
  • Refreshments
  • Shop
 Children and families
  • Activities for pre-school children
  • Events and resources for children and families
  • Baby changing facilities
 Disability access
  • Large print information and/or interpretation
  • Touch exhibits
  • Toilets for disabled
  • Wheelchair access to all public areas
  • Wheelchairs available for loan
 Schools services and facilities
  • Direct teaching services for schools
  • Member of staff available with responsibility for education
  • Primary school education service available
  • Printed/audio-visual information available for schools
  • Secondary school education service available
  • Education facilities available
  • Reception and lunch facilities for educational groups
 Research and adult learning
  • Academic publications and resources available
  • Adult lectures and courses held
  • Loan service
  • Teaching/resources available for HE/FE students
  • Mail order service available
  • Research facilities for academics
  • Study facilities
 Commercial and hire services
  • Facilities for private functions and events
  • Meeting room available

Left Bank
Spinningfields
Manchester
M3 3ER
England

logo: Designated as an Outstanding Collection

Website

People's History Museum

www.phm.org.uk

E-mail

People's History Museum

info@phm.org.uk

Telephone

People's History Museum

0161 228 7212

Fax

People's History Museum

0161 237 5965

All information is supplied by the venues or providers themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.

The entire collection of this museum is a Designated Collection of national importance.

The collections of the People's History Museum contain items relating to the working people of Britain, and cover ceramics, prints, posters, banners, ephemera and photographs.

The museum (registered as the National Museum of Labour History) is the national centre for the collection, conservation, interpretation and study of material relating to the history of working people in Britain.

Collection details

Trade and Commerce, Social History, Photography, Personalities, Performing Arts, Music, Industry, Fine Art, Design, Decorative and Applied Art, Costume and Textiles, Coins and Medals, Archives

Key artists and exhibits

  • Watch the first Match of the Day, visit a 1930s Co-op shop, play your favourite vinyl on the jukebox, create your own badge, perform your own Punch and Judy show, produce a fuzzy felt banner and much, much more......
  • The new People's History Museum will have more interactives throughout the galleries, both high tech and low tech so there's something for visitors of all ages. The 'Play Your Part' interactives, which were very popular in the old galleries, have been increased.
  • Almost 1500 historic objects will be on display including many items that will be on display for the first time. Some objects have been specially conserved so that they can be shown to visitors in the new galleries.
  • The redevelopment of the museum will also enable more of our collection of trade union and political banners to be shown. A new double height gallery space will show off these beautiful, striking banners at their best.

Collections services

  • Object identification and/or written enquiry service
  • Specialist publications on collections available
  • Object study facilities available (enquire in advance)

Left Bank
Spinningfields
Manchester
M3 3ER
England

logo: Designated as an Outstanding Collection

Website

People's History Museum

www.phm.org.uk

E-mail

People's History Museum

info@phm.org.uk

Telephone

People's History Museum

0161 228 7212

Fax

People's History Museum

0161 237 5965

All information is supplied by the venues or providers themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.
Resources listed here may include websites, bookable tours and workshops, books, loan boxes and more. You may need to scroll down or click on headers to see them all.
 face to face resources

Baddies - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
Baddies is a brand new Living History session looking at life during World War I, through the eyes of two brothers, Dougie and Arthur - one is a soldier, the other conscientious objector.

Languages

  • English.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Beeing Special - Early Years Session

http://www.phm.org.uk

Part of The Little People's History Museum - a new programme of multi-sensory story sessions developed for early years visitors.
Meet Little Bee, the bee who wants to be different. Join in the bee dance, search for flowers in the museum and follow Little Bee's adventure to find out how he becomes the hero of Victorian Manchester.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Build A Banner - pARTticipate Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our pARTicipate sessions include a range of art focused workshops informed by the museum's unique collections.
Our whole or half day banner making sessions are a creative and co-operative activity, developing children's skills and encouraging them to communicate. Find out about the history and symbolism of our unique collection of historic banners and work with an artist to create your own banner on a theme of your choice.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

City Centre Trail

http://www.phm.org.uk

Explore Manchester's hidden history on this half day guided walk. Discover the buildings, streets and monuments that tell the story of the world's first industrial city.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

From the Cradle to the Grave - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
From the Cradle to the Grave is a brand new Living History session featuring an innovative interplay between archive film, specially commissioned animation and actor performance. Pupils meet Pauly, a young girl growing up in Manchester during World War II.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Moving Stories - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
Meet Anita Sharma at school in Manchester as she describes her summer holiday to Bombay with her parents who were born there. Follow her journey to adulthood as she explores her identity.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Mr Ordinary's Prize - Early Years Session

http://www.phm.org.uk

Part of The Little People's History Museum - a new programme of multi-sensory story sessions developed for early years visitors.
Someone has stolen Mr Ordinary's Thinking and Doing! What will he do without them? Join in the adventure as Mr Ordinary and his friends try to get them back.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Museum of Me - pARTicipate Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our pARTicipate sessions include a range of art focused workshops informed by the museum's unique collections.
What do museums collect and why? Why do we place importance on certain objects? What would you put in your museum? Explore the museum collections with an artist and create a Museum of Me display.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

No Bed of Roses - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
This Living History session is based on the oral histories gathered from three Manchester women who migrated from the Caribbean to England in the 1950s and took part in an award-winning local history project in Hulme, Manchester. Meet Gabrielle and help her with her life-changing decisoin to move from the Carribean to Manchester in the 1950s.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Over the Rainbow - Early Years Session

http://www.phm.org.uk

Part of the Little People's History Museum - a new programme of multi-sensory story sessions developed for our early years visitors.
Meet Matilda, a little girl who is given a magic rainbow bag. Help Matilda to solve clues to get to the end of the rainbow and find what she's looking for....

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Read All About It! - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
This Living History session is based on the 19th century true story of James Bronterre O'Brien, editor of Victorian newspaper, the Poor Man's Guardian. Accompany Bronterre on a march to Peterloo, interview child mill worker John Oats and use drama and role play techniques to uncover the stories of the day.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Self-Guided Groups

http://www.phm.org.uk

Having been given a general introduction to the museum and the building by reception staff, you will have the opportunity to explore the museum yourself. Booking is essential for larger groups.

Languages

  • The museum displays are in English. All videos have subtitles.

Shopping Through Time - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
Shopping Through Time is a brand new, cross curicular Living History session for Key Stage 1 using our 1930s co-op shop. Pupils will meet our magical time-travelling character and find out about life in the past.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Strike a Light! - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
Meet Maggie McCallow, a Victorian match girl involved in the match factory strike of 1888 and find out about the shocking conditions she worked in.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

The Art of Protest - pARTicipate Workshops

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our pARTicipate sessions include a range of art focused workshops informed by the museum's unique collections.
This session looks at historical images of protest and objects from our collections as well as contemporary protest art. The session also explores issues, impact and media to help students design their own protest art and culminates in a march through the museum.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

The Hard Way Up - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
This Living History session is based on the story of local Suffragette and councillor Hannah Mitchell, who, like many women today, struggled to combine home and family with an active public role. She spoke out for the poor and for women, and became a peace campaigner after the First World War.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

William Cuffay - Living History Workshop

http://www.phm.org.uk

Our Living History workshops use performance, interactive drama activities and gallery exploration to bring learning to life.
This Living History session is based on the true story of 19th century Chartist leader William Cuffay, whose father was a freed slave. Cuffay's campaign for the right to vote ended with him being transported to Tasmania for treason.

How to obtain

Booking is essential; prices and booking information to be confirmed in early 2010.

Left Bank
Spinningfields
Manchester
M3 3ER
England

logo: Designated as an Outstanding Collection

Website

People's History Museum

www.phm.org.uk

E-mail

People's History Museum

info@phm.org.uk

Telephone

People's History Museum

0161 228 7212

Fax

People's History Museum

0161 237 5965

All information is supplied by the venues or providers themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.
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