The Potteries Museum Hanley will be undergoing a major £5M refurbishment set to open in 2026 as its biggest external change has been approved by Stoke-On-Trent City Council.
The front and side of the museum will be transformed with new terraced areas and a brand new main entrance will be created at the corner of the building with new steps leading up from Broad Street along with a wheelchair-accessible ramp from Bethesda Street.
The museum’s current cafe will be moved to the foyer where the shop is currently located and the existing entrance will cease to exist which is a good thing as it’s a hive for rough sleepers in the local area.
Internal changes will include the creation of an artist in the residence room, and the conversion of the three-storey sculpture court into an open storage gallery. The latter will increase storage capacity while also allowing the public to view items when they are not on display.
I feel as though the building doesn’t just need visual changes as the exhibits themselves are rather tired and dull even by Stoke standards.
There is so much space to add more permanent exhibits that are much more lively than what currently resides within the museum which includes stuffed animals and ceramics.
I would love nothing more than to have a music section of the museum dedicated to Robbie Williams, Lemmy from Motorhead and even Slash from Guns n Roses who spent a small amount of time in the city when he was very young.
A section consisting of costumes, instruments and more would be a great thing to have within the museum and it could even be moulded into an Entertainment section where films and TV shows shot in and around Stoke on Trent could be celebrated.
Exhibitions celebrating the local Gandeys circus or even The Matthews Family / Danters funfair would also be more interesting and interactive than what they have currently.
Museums need to be more fun and Hanley Museum is one of the most depressing you could ever wish to enter only saved by the beautiful Spitfire gallery which really is a testament to the local area and very interactive indeed.
It’s all well and good fixing the building to make it look nice but it’s the dusty exhibits inside that need a bit of an upgrade too!
I’d also love to see more higher quality travelling exhibitions coming to The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery, the Titanic one was a lovely little addition for the city and it would be great to have more of those coming to Hanley.
For more information please visit https://www.stokemuseums.org.uk/pmag/
