National Collections Centre

National Collections Centre. A major collections management, conservation, and research facility operated by the Science Museum Group. Located on the former RAF Wroughton airfield in Wiltshire, it serves as the primary repository for the vast majority of the Group's collection of over 7 million items, spanning science, technology, engineering, and medicine. The centre enables the preservation, study, and selective public display of historically significant objects from the Industrial Revolution to the present day.

History and establishment

The facility was established in 2004 by the Science Museum Group to address critical storage and conservation needs for its rapidly expanding collections, which were previously dispersed across multiple inadequate sites. The choice of the decommissioned RAF Wroughton airfield, with its large, robust hangars built during the Second World War, provided an ideal secure environment. This move consolidated items from the Science Museum in South Kensington, the National Railway Museum in York, and the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester. The creation of the centre represented a strategic investment by the National Heritage Memorial Fund and other bodies in the United Kingdom's cultural infrastructure, ensuring the long-term safeguarding of the nation's scientific and industrial heritage.

Collections and scope

The collections encompass an extraordinarily diverse range of objects, documenting global advances in transport, engineering, medicine, and communications. Significant holdings include complete aircraft like the British Airways Concorde, a vast array of railway locomotives and rolling stock from the National Railway Museum, and historic medical equipment from the Wellcome Collection. The repository also houses extensive collections of photographic plates from the Royal Astronomical Society, early computing equipment, and machinery from the Boulton and Watt era. This breadth provides an unparalleled resource for academic research into the history of technology, supporting scholars from institutions like the University of Oxford and the Imperial College London.

Facilities and location

The centre occupies a 545-acre site on the former RAF Wroughton airfield near Swindon, utilizing several of the original large aircraft hangars alongside purpose-built, environmentally controlled storage modules. These facilities are designed to meet stringent British Standard specifications for museum storage, with dedicated zones for large objects, fragile paper-based items, and temperature-sensitive materials. The location in the Wiltshire countryside offers significant security and space advantages, while its proximity to the M4 motorway provides good logistical links to the Group's museums in London, York, and Manchester. Specialized laboratories for conservation science and object preparation are also housed on-site.

Public access and engagement

While primarily a working collections facility, the centre operates a public engagement program through pre-booked guided tours, open weekends, and special events that offer behind-the-scenes access to the stored collections. These activities are managed separately from the main storage operations to preserve conservation and security standards. The centre also facilitates object loans to museums worldwide, including the Smithsonian Institution and the Deutsches Museum, and supports digital access initiatives, making collection images and data available online. Collaborations with organizations like the BBC for documentary filming further extend public reach.

Management and operations

The centre is managed and funded as an integral part of the Science Museum Group, which is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Day-to-day operations are overseen by a dedicated team of registrars, conservators, and technicians who manage object movements, environmental monitoring, and preservation work. Strategic development often involves partnerships with corporate entities like Rolls-Royce and research grants from bodies such as the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Its operations are critical to fulfilling the Group's mandate under the National Heritage Act 1983 to preserve and interpret the national collection for public benefit.

Category:Museums in Wiltshire Category:Science museums in England Category:2004 establishments in England