STEAM – Museum of the Great Western Railway
A railway museum in the former Swindon Works, telling the story of the Great Western Railway through famous locomotives, reconstructed workshops and hands-on displays.
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Over het museum
STEAM is housed in part of the former Swindon Works of the Great Western Railway, a huge railway factory that operated from 1843 to 1986 and at its height built three locomotives a week. The museum occupies an engineering workshop of around 1842 that was built with stone from the Box Tunnel. It opened in 2000, replacing an earlier and smaller Great Western Railway Museum that had opened in 1962 in a restored mid-19th-century lodging house for railway workers on Faringdon Road.
The museum tells the story of the men and women who built, operated and travelled on the Great Western Railway, the network shaped by the engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Visitors pass through reconstructions of the offices, the General Stores, the foundry, the carriage body shop, the machine shop, the boiler shop and the erecting shop, supported by film, recorded memories of former railway workers and interactive displays. A 1930s station platform shows famous locomotives, a royal carriage and a 1934 buffet car.
The collection includes locomotives such as King George V, City of Truro and Caerphilly Castle, a replica of the broad gauge engine North Star, and a large number of Great Western objects and archive material. Much of the former works site is now a designer outlet, and the museum shares it with the National Trust's headquarters and offices of English Heritage and Historic England. Swindon Borough Council runs the museum.
Hoogtepunten
- Locomotives including King George V, City of Truro and Caerphilly Castle
- Replica of the broad gauge engine North Star
- Queen Victoria's Royal Saloon of 1897
- Reconstructed Swindon Works with foundry, machine shop and boiler shop
- 1930s station platform
- Signal box, train simulator and model railways
Vaste collectie
- Locomotives and rolling stock – Famous Great Western locomotives, including King George V, City of Truro and Caerphilly Castle, with Queen Victoria's Royal Saloon and a 1934 buffet car on a 1930s station platform.
- Swindon Works – Reconstructions of the offices, general stores, foundry, machine shop, boiler shop and erecting shop, with film and the voices of former railway workers.
- Wall of Names – A memorial on the mezzanine floor to the men and women who worked at Swindon Works, with a view over the main Bristol railway line.
- Opgericht
- 2000
- Beheerder
- Swindon Borough Council
Toegangsprijzen & kortingen
| Volwassenen | £ 14 |
|---|---|
| Met korting | £ 11,50Students and seniors |
| Kinderen & jongeren | £ 10,50gratis t/m 2 jaar · Child ticket for ages 3 to 15, who must be accompanied by an adult; under 3s are free. |
| Senioren | £ 11,50 |
| Mensen met een beperking | –begeleider gratis · One carer accompanying a paying disabled visitor is admitted free; the carer option should be chosen when booking online. |
| Studenten | £ 11,50 |
| Groepen | –School and group visits are booked by phone or email. |
| Gezinnen | £ 44Two adults and two children. |
| Family ticket, one adult and two children | £ 31,50 |
| Family ticket, one adult and three children | £ 41 |
| Family ticket, two adults and one child | £ 35 |
| Family ticket, two adults and three children | £ 54 |
| Season ticket, adult (12 months) | £ 28Child £21, student or senior £23. |
Day tickets can be bought online in advance or on the day. A season ticket costs the price of two standard tickets and gives unlimited visits for 12 months, plus free entry to partner museums in Salisbury, Dorchester, Poole, Swindon (Lydiard House) and Devizes. Day and season tickets are not valid for special weekend and evening events such as Comic Con, the Great Western Brick Show and Christmas at STEAM.
Toegankelijkheid
- Rolstoeltoegankelijk
- Lift
- Aangepast toilet
- Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats
- Hulphonden welkom
- Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten
- Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
- Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
- Audiodescriptie: geen informatie
The museum is fully accessible, with lifts and ramps for wheelchairs and pushchairs throughout and automatic entrance doors. Wheelchairs and motorised scooters can be borrowed free of charge if booked. Accessible toilets with call points, and baby and adult changing facilities, are available. Videos are subtitled, information panels are in large print, and the Ticket Desk has an induction loop and low-level counters. Parking for disabled visitors is close to the main entrance. Guide, hearing and assistance dogs are welcome and dog bowls are provided.
Kinderen & gezin
Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen
| Toegang kinderen | gratis t/m 2 jaar |
|---|---|
| Gezinsticket | £ 44 · Two adults and two children. |
- Gezinsrondleidingen & workshops
- Doe- en voelstations
- Kinderwagenvriendelijk
- Verschoonruimte
Families can change signals in a real signal box, drive a steam train simulator and operate model railways, and meet volunteers. Family tickets cover several combinations of adults and children, and children under 3 enter free. Baby changing and feeding facilities are on the ground floor, buggies are allowed, and school-age learning sessions run in term time.
Bereikbaarheid & parkeren
Met het openbaar vervoer
Swindon railway station
The museum is a 10 to 20-minute walk from Swindon railway station, the town centre and the bus station. From the station, turn right and follow the signed path to the GWR tunnel leading to the museum. Buses 1, 1A, 5, 10, 19, 22, 53, 54 and 55 from the town centre stop close by; ask for the Designer Outlet.
Met de auto
Betaald parkeren · 5 min. lopen naar de ingang
There is no visitor parking on site; spaces for disabled visitors are close to the main entrance and are entered by intercom. Visitors use the Swindon Designer Outlet North car park (sat nav SN2 2NA) or West car park (SN5 7JL), a five-minute walk away, where the ticketless system charges on exit. There is no free parking at events, and alternative car parks are at Bristol Street and the Brunel multi-storey car parks in the town centre.
- Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats
From the M4 leave at junction 16 and follow the brown signs for Designer Outlet or the signs with an M for museum. The museum shares the historic Churchward site with the Designer Outlet. Taxis are available at the railway and bus stations.
Route plannenService & horeca
- Café
- Museumwinkel
- Garderobe: niet aanwezig
- Kluisjes: niet aanwezig
The Platform One Café serves hot and cold drinks, homemade cakes and sandwiches, and can be visited without a museum ticket. The shop sells railway-themed gifts, books and pens made from timber from the Swindon Works site, and takes card payments only. Large bags, rucksacks and luggage are not allowed in the museum, and there is no storage for bags or coats. Toilets are in the entrance area, on the station platform and in the café.
Evenementen & zaalverhuur
- Ruimtes te huur
- Privéfeesten
- Zakelijke evenementen
- Bruiloften / trouwceremonies
Tot 200 personen.
Spaces include the Great Western Hall, Caerphilly Castle Hall (up to 200 standing or 120 for dinner), Hawksworth Hall, a theatre, boardrooms, the station platform and the Brunel area. Wi-Fi is listed as an amenity of the hire halls.
Aanvragen & detailsJe bezoek plannen
| Aanbod voor scholen | ja |
|---|---|
| Fotograferen | Filming and photography for private non-commercial purposes are welcome; photographing or filming school children on organised visits by third parties is not allowed. |
| Goed om te weten | Bags are searched on entry, and baby buggies and bags with necessary medical or baby-care items are allowed. Volunteers, including former railway workers, are on hand to talk with visitors. Discovery Sessions for nursery to Key Stage 4 pupils welcome up to 20,000 school visitors a year. |
