Facilities and accessibility at Manchester Science Festival

Tickets

Please book a free museum admission ticket to enjoy the festival fun as part of a daytime visit to the museum.  

Tickets for adult-only evening events can be bought in advance via the what's on page.

We offer free personal assistant/carer tickets for our paid-for events and exhibitions. These are available to book online, by phone on 033 0058 0058, by email on info@sciencemuseumgroup.ac.uk, or in person on the day of your visit.

Relaxed sessions and BSL interpreted events

Activity Zones

• Tuesday 22 October, 9.00–11.00
• Tuesday 22 October, 17.30–18.30

Explore the festival Activity Zones at one of our BSL Interpreted Relaxed Sessions.  

These self-led sessions will take place at a quieter time of day and a BSL interpreter will be present in the Activity Zones to improve the experience of Deaf visitors who use BSL.

During these sessions there will be adjusted light and sound levels to create a more sensory friendly environment. Lights will be lifted in darker spaces and audio elements will have reduced volume.

Please note that the museum will open for general admission from 10.00 – 17.00, so it will start to get busier from 10.00.  

These are drop-in sessions. You are welcome to arrive at any time within your chosen timeslot.

Evening events

A BSL interpreter will be present at all adult only evening events. These are:

• Does AI have a place in Space?, 18 October 
• Cosmic Quiz, 19 October
• Museum After Hours, 26 October

Captioning

All videos displayed in the Festival Activity Zones will be captioned.

Quieter spaces

During the festival, we expect the museum to be busier than normal, but there will be some quieter areas for visitors that prefer a calmer environment or need a rest.

An additional designated quiet room will be available in the 1830 Warehouse. There will also be a family space with cosy furnishings and space to relax together and take a break away from the activities.  

In the Learning Studio in the New Warehouse, there will be a special interactive installation created by young artists from Pinc College. With hands on activities and displays exploring themes of colour and emotion, we expect this space to be a calmer environment.

Step-free access

There is step-free access to all floors of our multi-level buildings.

All lifts are wheelchair accessible. Please note that the primary lifts in the 1830 Warehouse are smaller and visitors using larger wheelchairs may need to be directed to use an alternative lift. Festival staff and volunteers will be on hand to welcome you and assist if needed.

Café and picnic area

As well as our regular museum café, there will be a pop-up café and picnic area open in the 1830 Warehouse throughout the festival period.

Buggy park

An additional buggy park will be located next to the entrance of the 1830 Warehouse during the Festival. Please take any valuable items with you as we don't secure this area.

Toilets and baby changing

Toilets (including accessible) and a baby-changing room are on the ground floor of the 1830 Warehouse.

The nearest Changing Places toilet is located in the Bistro on Level 1 of the New Warehouse. This is equipped with hoist, changing bench and centrally located toilet. The toilet is accessible with a RADAR key. If you have forgotten your key please ask a member of staff for access.