What’s at Jodrell Bank for kids
Are you wondering what’s at Jodrell Bank for kids? If so you’ve come to the right place as I’m going to share our family trip during the school holidays and all the best bits for kids to enjoy. Find more Family days out North West here.
AD/press trip. We were invited along to Jodrell Bank during the Easter holidays 2024. All thoughts, photos and opinions are my own.
Where is Jodrell Bank?
Jodrell Bank is in East Cheshire. The address and Jodrell Bank postcode is
Jodrell Bank
Bomish Lane,
Lower Withington
Cheshire
SK11 9DL
There is plenty of free parking.
What to expect at Jodrell Bank
My kids have grown up seeing the iconic Lovell telescope at Jodrell Bank on the horizon on many family walks. We’ve also driven past it many times too.
I visited Jodrell Bank on a school trip in the late 80s/early 90s and still remember the planetarium to this day. We took our eldest to visit probably about 6 years ago and were really underwhelmed. The planetarium long gone.
I had heard about the new first light pavilion but this was our first visit since the new exhibit opened and we were excited to see it for ourselves.
What a fantastic addition to the site, Jodrell Bank is once again an amazing science centre to visit with kids. I honestly think my kids will have the same strong memories of this visit as I do of my first visit 30 years ago. I’m also sure this won’t be our last visit.
So what can you expect? Well you can see the Lovell telescope up close, enjoy loads of interactive exhibits and learn all about space and the history of Jodrell Bank which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, see a space film in the space dome and there is a small playground and interactive science exhibits outdoors too.
I’m going to write more about each area below.
First light pavilion
This is the new building that opened in June 2022 and what a stunning building it is, both inside and out.
Inside you’ll find toilet facilities, a cafe, picnic area, the space dome and the first light exhibition.
The first light exhibition is a stunning room that uses technology to bring the history of Jodrell Bank to life. There are loads of interactive elements so kids will love it.
There are screens playing videos, purpose made for the exhibit, and loads of details. You’ll all learn so much about how Jodrell Bank started and the work that has happened over the decades.
There are touch screens with games and other interactive elements like maps with further details about each area. There are also fun elements like a snakes head infrared camera, cold war spy dressing up and a small tunnel to crawl through into your vary own space window.
There are also a few quiz points where you have to try and get all 10 questions right (covering what you learn in the exhibition) to see a metor shower in the room.
This is a really fun exhibition and we spent a lot of time in it and returned more than once. My kids did manage to get all 10 questions right after many attempts!
Jodrell Bank dome show
The space dome is such an incredible auditorium with a huge curved projector screen where you can see the free 15 minute film at regular intervals throughout the day. We were given a sheet with the times and locations of all shows, talks and activities that were on during the day we visited.
This short free film is a really immersive experience with stunning videos and effects as if you are in space as well as partly informational about Jodrell Bank.
There was also another short film showing during our visit which was £5 per seat but all tickets were sold out for some showings when we arrived (just an hour after opening on a Friday in the Easter holidays) so get there early if you want to add this onto your visit.
Space pavilion
Here you’ll find an interactive space exhibition with lots of hands on activities for kids that teach them about space. It’s a really fun room with plenty of science experiments for children to have fun whilst they are learning.
This is an older part of the attraction and there were several exhibits that weren’t working but there were plenty more that were working well. My kids particularly enjoyed the plasma ball, heat mapping camera and a ball experiment that represented a black hole.
This building also has the classroom and event space that are used for different things. On our visit the classroom had a craft activity for kids and the event space had a photography exhibition of photos of the Lovell Telescope and space.
Star pavilion
This building houses the Wolfson Auditorium where we watched the curious kids science show. Find ore details about this show below.
Planet Pavilion
This is a small room at the exit (just before the gift shop). It’s worth not walking straight through though as there is an interactive clock work collection of planets on the ceiling.
Playground
There is a small playground behind the first light pavilion building. It was very busy on our visit so I only managed to get a photo of some of the equipment. There is also a swing, roundabout and spinning bucket.
Outdoor experiments
Right in front of the Lovell Telescope are some really fun outdoor experiments for kids to get hands on with. These include these two whispering dishes. These really work and they are great fun.
There is also one where you can see how weight distribution affects spinning disks, one that shows forces on some ropes as you spin the equipment and one where you can move bells up and down a track and send a football down it to make them ring.
There is also an outdoor exhibition of photos and information about Jodrell Bank.
Facilities at Jodrell Bank
You’ll find lots of indoor and outdoor picnic areas at Jodrell Bank as well as two cafes.
There are also plenty of toilet facilities around the site including accessible toilets and baby changing.
What’s on in school holidays for kids
During the Easter holidays there were indoor crafts (in the classroom in the space pavilion), outdoor crafts (in a covered picnic area) and the curious kids science show.
Indoor crafts – these were either colouring a rocket picture or decorating and making your own windmill.
Outdoor crafts (weather permitting) – this was a station to make your own seed bombs.
Curious kids science show – This is a really fun science show for families. It’s in the format of a science quiz of kids against adults with lots of facts and some live science experiments thrown in. These include some small explosions.
All these activities are included in the price of admission. Make sure you visit their what’s on guide as they have activities (and usually the science show) in most school holidays.
Is Jodrell Bank good for toddlers?
Jodrell Bank is great for kids of all ages. The whole attraction is really accessible and pram-friendly and there are plenty of baby changing facilities.
There are some bits of Jodrell Bank that toddlers will enjoy but I would say that it is slightly older children that will really get the most from their visit. I’d say school age upwards.
If you have an older child that will enjoy Jodrell Bank then, I would visit with them and your toddler but if you are just looking for a great day out for toddlers then I think there are more suitable places to visit. Find my guide to Things to do in Cheshire with toddlers here.
Our verdict
We loved our visit to Jodrell Bank. My kids were 7 and almost 11. There were plenty of older and younger kids there who all seemed to be enjoying the attraction as much as mine.
There school holiday science show is the right mix of funny and educational and the spring crafts were a fun way to spend a bit of time.
The hands on experiments both indoors and outdoors are fantastic for kids and I’m sure my kids learnt loads without realising.
The first light pavilion and space dome are the star attractions here. It’s definitely worth exploring everything but the first light pavilion and watching a space dome show are not to be missed.
We also loved getting up close and seeing the Lovell Telescope up close. It’s such an iconic structure on the Cheshire sky line and the attraction really shares the story of this special place well.
Planning your visit to Jodrell Bank
You don’t need to book your tickets in advance but if you do book online your ticket will be an annual pass (for the same price as paying at the gate).
Current ticket prices (April 2024) are £14 for adults and £10 for children aged 4-18. £12 for students and those over 65 years. There are family ticket discounts available too.
We arrived an hour after opening and found that some of the £5 show times were fully booked (these can be booked online in advance) and 1 of the 2 free science shows (which can’t be prebooked) was full so plan to arrive early is my advice and book what you can online.
Book your tickets, check opening times and see what’s on here – Jodrell Bank.
More things to do nearby
Fancy another science museum? This ones about an hour away – Catalyst Museum.
Find loads of pram friendly walks Cheshire here.
Fancy a more challenging walk (but still suitable for little legs)? Then you need my guide to The cloud Congleton.
Find out about the nearby Tatton Park farm here.
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