New State-Of-The-Art Winding Engine to Be Installed at the National Coal Mining Museum

Posted By: Christopher Morganon: November 29, 2024In: Current Affairs, Education & Training, News, Regional News

The National Coal Mining Museum's underground experience

Reading Time: 2 minutes

By Joshua Robinson –

The National Coal Mining Museum is set to temporarily pause its underground experience to install a brand new winding engine that will take visitors 140 metres underground.

The current winder, which powers a cage descending into the 230-year-old coal mine, will be replaced with a new winder during the early part of 2025. The Museum is committed to preserving access to its historic coal workings, the very last accessible deep colliery in England.

As a result, the museum’s underground experience will be closed from Sunday 29th December, and is expected to reopen in April 2025.

During the closure of the underground experience in early 2025, there will still be plenty to do at the Museum, including the launch of a new immersive digital experience in January 2025.

Made possible through the generosity of a Rural England Prosperity Fund grant from West Yorkshire Combined Authority, the Museum is transforming the historic surface tunnel into a new immersive experience.

Visitors of all ages will be led through the experience by an expert mine guide, bringing the experience to life through their first-hand accounts of working in England’s coalfields. Along the way, they will meet fascinating characters as they are taken on a journey through almost 200 years of mining history thanks to state-of-the-art technology.

The experience has been created with immersive experience experts XPLOR, based locally at the Museum in South Kirkby at the Production Park campus.

Visitors will also be able to enjoy a new behind-the-scenes overground colliery tour, new exhibitions and events, a play area, a horse-keeper and pony talks, nature trails, spotlight talks, family activities, a café, and much more.

Lynn Dunning, CEO of the National Coal Mining Museum England, said: “It is critical that our winder is replaced to allow us to take visitors deep underground for generations to come, and to continue to share important stories around England’s coal mining heritage. Our underground tours will be open for the remainder of the year including our magical Santa’s grotto which will be launched as part of our annual Light Up Festival.”

“The rest of the Museum will remain open in the New Year as usual with so much to see and do, including an exciting new immersive experience which we can’t wait to share more details about that will be ready for visitors of all ages to experience in January. It’s an exciting time for the Museum with new exhibitions opening in the New Year and lots of exciting events planned, we look forward to welcoming visitors old and new.”

For further updates and information, please visit: https://www.ncm.org.uk/