Museum of Making

The Museum of Making stands beside the River Derwent in Derby, on the site of Lombe’s Mill, an 18th-century silk factory that formed the southern end of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. The original industrial museum opened in 1974, but a £17 million redevelopment between 2016 and 2021 transformed it into a modern hub for science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics. The project team used an alliance contract to finish on time and within budget despite the pandemic and supplier failures. The museum’s first year brought awards, including a ‘Highly Commended’ in the Museum+Heritage Awards for sustainability and the National Construction News Project of the Year under £25 million. In 2022 it reached the shortlist for the Art Fund Museum of the Year. Exhibits are placed on upper floors to limit flood damage after Storm Babet in 2023 forced a temporary closure until January 2024. Visitors find three floors of galleries and workshops where historic machinery, contemporary art and hands-on activities explore making across centuries. The riverside setting offers views of the Derwent’s weirs and the surrounding mills. A flood-protection scheme is planned for the workshop area to keep the site open during future high water.