Thinktank

Over het museum

Thinktank opened on 29 September 2001 as part of the Millennium Point complex in Digbeth, funded by Birmingham City Council with support from the Millennium Commission. It took over the collections of the Museum of Science and Industry, which had opened in 1951 in a former electroplating works on Newhall Street and closed in 1997.

The best-known item in the collection is the Smethwick Engine, a steam engine designed and built by James Watt in 1779, which worked until 1891 and was given by the Birmingham Canal Company in 1959. The museum also keeps locomotives, vehicles and other objects that show how the city became a centre of industry and transport.

The building has four floors with more than 200 hands-on exhibits, from the past on the ground floor towards the future on the top floor. A digital planetarium opened in 2005 and was the first purpose-built one of its kind in the UK. Since April 2012 the museum has been run by Birmingham Museums Trust.

Hoogtepunten

• Smethwick Engine, a steam engine built by James Watt in 1779
• MiniBrum, a child-sized city for under-8s
• Science Garden with more than 30 outdoor hands-on exhibits
• Planetarium with shows about the night sky and the solar system
• Move it gallery with vintage cars, bikes, a train and a tram
• Gamesworld with over 80 consoles and classic games

Vaste collectie

• Smethwick Engine – A steam engine built by James Watt in 1779 and in use until 1891, shown with other engines from the Industrial Revolution.
• MiniBrum – A child-sized mini city with play zones for under-8s and sensory areas for babies.
• Move it – Vintage cars, bikes, planes, a train and a tram that show why Birmingham became a transport hub.

Opgericht

2001

Beheerder

Birmingham Museums Trust

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

Prices shown are for term time; during school holidays, including holiday weekends, tickets cost £21.95 for adults, £12.95 for children, £17.95 for concessions and £54.95 for families. Members of Birmingham Museums Trust enter free. Booking online is recommended, especially at weekends and in school holidays, and family discounts are applied automatically at online checkout.

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

Central lifts serve all floors, and the museum describes the building as accessible to wheelchair users. Wheelchairs can be booked in advance by phone and are ready at the ticket desk. Accessible toilets are on every level with baby and adult changing; the adult changing table has no hoist and there is no Changing Places toilet. Fixed induction loops cover the theatre, the planetarium and the Futures Gallery, and the planetarium has space for up to six wheelchair users, subtitled shows and tactile books in selected shows. The Millennium Point car park has 20 free Blue Badge bays. Guide and assistance dogs are welcome, and a quiet room is available on request. A sensory map shows calmer areas, and Morning Explorers sessions before opening are aimed at autistic visitors and those with sensory processing disorder. Real-time BSL interpreting is offered through Convo, videos are subtitled, and large-print maps and magnifying glasses can be borrowed.

Kinderen & gezin

Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen

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

The museum is designed as a family day out. MiniBrum is a child-sized city for under-8s with dedicated areas for babies and toddlers under 3, and the Science Garden has over 30 hands-on exhibits for all ages. Theatre science shows, drop-in science sessions, object handling and art activities run at weekends and in school holidays, and Toddler Thursdays is a relaxed planetarium session for ages 1 to 3. STEM Explorer Backpacks are designed for ages 4 to 11, and birthday party packages are offered. Buggies can use the central lifts, and there is baby changing on Levels 0 and 2, buggy parking in MiniBrum and bottle warming in the café. Children under 3 are free.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

The car park is inside the Clean Air Zone. Sat-nav postcode B4 7AP, then choose the car park name. Bike racks are on the Jennens Road and Curzon Street sides. The website warns about roadworks and diversions around the building.

Service & horeca

• Café
• Museumwinkel
• Kluisjes
• Wifi

Free Wi-Fi is available. The Signal Box Café has high chairs and a microwave for warming bottles or food, and there is a ground-floor picnic area with tables. Lockers are available, a cash machine is in Millennium Point and bike racks are on both sides of the building.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

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