Abbey Pumping Station Museum

Over het museum

Abbey Pumping Station was built in 1891 by Leicester Corporation beside the River Soar to pump the town's sewage to a sewage farm at Beaumont Leys. The grand building was designed by the Leicester architect Stockdale Harrison and is crowned by a chimney that the museum gives as 150 feet high. It houses four Woolf compound rotative beam engines built by the Leicester firm Gimson and Company, and the site replaced a smaller pumping station at Knighton. Electric pumps took over in 1964 and the old station was no longer needed.

In 1972 the building reopened as a museum of science and technology run by Leicestershire Museums. The huge beam engines were kept intact and gradually returned to working order by volunteers, and the museum says it is the only engine house in the world where four working examples of the same beam engine can be seen in one building. Since 1997 the museum has been run by Leicester City Council.

The galleries cover science, industry, health and hygiene, with displays on toilets and drains, the Made in Leicester gallery of knitting and shoe-making machinery, and the 1908 Leicester-built car known as the Old Grey Mare. A transport shed holds vintage buses, fire engines, steam engines and a narrow-gauge railway that runs on event days, and the grounds include a science-themed playground and a sensory garden.

Hoogtepunten

• Four restored Gimson beam engines, seen in steam on special event days
• Made in Leicester gallery with knitting and shoe-making machinery and the 1908 Old Grey Mare car
• Displays on Victorian sewage, toilets and hygiene
• Vintage vehicles and a narrow-gauge steam railway on event days
• Outdoor exhibits, playground and sensory garden

Vaste collectie

• The beam engines – Four Gimson and Co beam engines in the engine house, with a main boiler house showing one of the original Lancashire boilers; the engines are in steam on special event days.
• Made in Leicester – Machines from Leicester's knitting and shoe-making industries, and The Old Grey Mare, a car built in Leicester in 1908.
• Life in Leicester and the transport shed – Displays on a local cinema, washing facilities, trams, toys and science, and a transport shed with vintage fire engines, buses, steam rollers and locomotives that is open on event days.

Opgericht

1972

Beheerder

Leicester City Council (Leicester Museums & Galleries)

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

De toegang is gratis.

General entry is free, with a suggested donation of 3 pounds. Special event days are charged; the price is shown in the events calendar. On event days a carer is admitted free.

Toegankelijkheid

• Deels rolstoeltoegankelijk
• Lift
• Aangepast toilet
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats: geen informatie
• Hulphonden welkom
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten: geen informatie
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie: geen informatie

The grounds, paved paths and ground-floor galleries are accessible to wheelchair users, and a platform lift serves the front entrance and the Lower Beam Engine House. The upper floors of the Beam Engine House are reached only by narrow metal stairways and are unsuitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs. There is an accessible toilet with a baby change station and a Changing Places toilet between the workshop and the Manager's House (radar key from reception). A hearing loop is provided and there is no audio guide. Audio-visual displays in the Lower Beam Engine House have British Sign Language but no subtitles. A wheelchair can be borrowed free of charge. Assistance dogs are welcome. There is no parking on site.

Kinderen & gezin

Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen

• Gezinsrondleidingen & workshops
• Speurtocht, doeboekje of kinderaudiotour
• Doe- en voelstations
• Kinderwagenvriendelijk
• Verschoonruimte
• Speeltuin / speelhoek
• Kinderfeestjes

The museum has interactive exhibits for all ages, printable activity packs and an outdoor spotting trail. The grounds have a technology-themed children's playground and a sensory garden. Event days include steam train rides. The Switch Room can be hired for children's parties.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

The museum stands next to the National Space Centre, north of the city centre. National Cycle Route 6 passes the site.

Service & horeca

• Café
• Museumwinkel

There is no cafe during normal opening, but a cafe runs in the Switch Room on special event days. Food and drink may not be consumed inside the museum building, but outdoor seating and extensive grounds are available for picnics. The reception shop sells souvenirs.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

• Ruimtes te huur
• Privéfeesten
• Zakelijke evenementen
• Bruiloften / trouwceremonies

Tot 200 personen.

The Electric Switch Room holds up to 50 people and suits children's parties, small functions and meetings, with a projector and screen. The marquee seats up to 200 guests banquet style. Weddings with ceremony and reception are possible.

Je bezoek plannen