The Science and Industry Museum is gearing up to mark a monumental milestone.
It’s been a long time coming, but in just a few weeks time, it’ll be welcoming visitors back inside one of the UK’s most significant industrial heritage buildings – the Power Hall.
Power Hall: The Andrew Law Gallery is a free working gallery where visitors can immerse themselves in the sights, smells, and sounds of the engine-driven ideas and industry that started in Manchester and went on to change the world.
Officially set to reopen Friday 17 October, it’s the latest building to open as part of a multi-million-pound regeneration project currently taking place across the Science and Industry Museum to conserve its historic buildings and reveal new spaces for all visitors to enjoy, play, and learn in for generations to come.
When the building throws open its doors, you can expect the return of iconic engines – including some that will be running for the first time in more than a decade – alongside a whole host of new interactives, perspectives, and people stories that reveal the innovation of Manchester’s industrial heritage.
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Originally built as a shipping shed for the world’s first inter-city steam powered passenger railway, Power Hall is Grade II-listed building of ‘global importance’.
It was the building that the museum first opened back in September 1983, when it became home to one of the UK’s largest collections of historic working engines.
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Power Hall temporarily closed in 2019 to allow for urgent repair works to be carried out, as well as a ‘pioneering’ de-carbonisation project to reduce the building’s carbon emissions, and a reimagining of its displays, interpretation, and visitor experience.
The Science and Industry Museum has finally set its grand reopening date for iconic Power Hall / Credit: Science Museum Group
But after more than five years, it’s now thundering towards its reopening, and is bringing a train load of working machinery, hands-on interactives, and brand-new stories to discover along with it.
“This is a hugely significant moment for our museum and for Manchester,” said Sally MacDonald, who is the Director of the Science and Industry Museum.
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“Power Hall symbolises the city’s innovation, creativity, and resilience, and we are overjoyed that visitors will soon be back to enjoy all the amazing objects and stories on display. Ideas that began in this city have impacted people and places across the world and shaped life as we know it, and Power Hall showcases this in a very physical way.
“Our colleagues who first set up this gallery in 1983 knew that science and engineering have always been crucial to Manchester’s success and future growth.
The Grade II-listed Power Hall closed in 2019 for urgent repair works / Credit: Science Museum Group
“Many people have told me that the Power Hall was inspirational for them as children, and I hope now it can inspire a new generation of inventors and technicians.”
Sally added that she wants to say a ‘massive thank you’ to the museum’s fantastic collaborators, partners, and funders for helping them to create this ‘must-see’ Manchester experience.
She concluded: “Of course, thank you to our visitors for their patience and sustained interest while Power Hall has been closed.
“I speak on behalf of everyone at the museum when I say we can’t wait to welcome you back.”
Power Hall: The Andrew Law Gallery will reopen on Friday 17 October, and visits are free and included as part of a museum ticket.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
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Government launches £442m drive to get rough sleepers off streets before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has launched a £442m drive to get rough sleepers off the streets before Christmas.
Learning from ‘innovative’ approaches put into place during the pandemic, the Government has announced that new accommodation will be rolled out across England this winter, as well as offering practical help with housing, health, and other needs to support people to build a more stable life for themselves in the future.
The new commitment to offer everyone a route off the streets this Christmas, along with boosted funding, reflect the Andy Burnham‘s national drive to make ‘real change’ and get everyone playing their part in ending rough sleeping.
Not only will these plans change the lives of rough sleepers, but it’s also said they will have huge benefits for the country as a whole.
Research from homelessness charity Crisis suggests that by preventing 40,000 people from becoming homeless for a year, taxpayers could save around £370 million.
The Government has launched a £442m drive to get rough sleepers off the streets before Christmas / Credit: Number 10 Press Office | Jon Tyson (via Unsplash)
As well provisions to get people off the streets, and the intensive ‘wraparound’ support, the newly allocated funding will also help local areas deliver more than 1,000 ‘settled’ homes over the next three years, it has been confirmed.
Areas facing the greatest pressures will receive the largest share of support.
Working alongside councils, Mayors will play a leading role in driving local action to end rough sleeping, and will be tasked with making decisions that are right for their communities to deliver help where it’s needed most.
The Prime Minister says he ‘won’t accept’ rough sleeping any longer. He commented: “No one should have to bed down in a doorway or outside a station, but we’ve seen it for so long that it feels like Westminster has started to accept it.
“That’s why my first instruction as Prime Minister was to end rough sleeping, and it’s why today we’re getting started with a national drive to get everyone in for Christmas. We did it in the pandemic, we can do it again. But it needs all of us.
“Government will put the money in, but I’m asking leaders in communities and sectors across society to play their part locally too.
“Let’s get people out the cold, and let’s bring back hope.”
Featured Image – Gary Knight (via Flickr)
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Trainline and Virgin Atlantic among companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing
Emily Sergeant
A number of companies are currently under investigation for ‘misleading’ pricing practices.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched three new consumer protection investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic, and RED Driving School over concerns that customers were not shown the total price upfront when buying things like train and coach tickets, holidays, or even driving lessons.
The investigations are part of a wider CMA clampdown on misleading pricing practices – in this instance, where mandatory charges are separated from the headline price, or added later in the buying process, which is known as drip pricing.
These practices leave consumers facing ‘unexpected’ costs or having to calculate the so-called true cost themselves.
Such practices can also impact competition between businesses, as a firm using drip pricing may falsely appear to be cheaper than a competitor pricing correctly, and therefore attract more customers.
Trainline and Virgin Atlantic are among the companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing / Credit: Northern | Aric Cheng (via Unsplash)
Trainline is being investigated over whether all mandatory fees have been included in the upfront prices displayed to consumers buying tickets in advance on its app and website, while Virgin Atlantic’s investigation will focus on whether mandatory resort fees and local taxes have been included in the upfront prices shown to customers buying package holidays.
RED Driving School is being investigated over how a mandatory booking fee and ‘digital’ fee have been displayed to people booking driving lessons – specifically whether these fees have been included in the total upfront price.
“At a time when many households are watching every pound they spend, it is important that people are not surprised by extra fees,” commented Emma Cochrane, who is the Executive Director for Consumer Protection at the CMA.
“Clear pricing helps people compare offers confidently and choose the option that works best for them.
“Unexpected mandatory charges make this much harder, which is why the CMA initially put these firms on notice over concerns about their pricing practices and is now opening formal investigations.”
The CMA says it’s at the beginning of its investigations and has reached no conclusions about whether these firms have broken the law.
If it finds there has been an infringement of the law, the CMA can order businesses to pay compensation to affected customers or be charged up to 10% of global turnover.
Emily Sergeant -
25th September 2025 
