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Project

Ironbridge Gorge museums

Last updated:
29 April 2026
Industrial building at the Ironbridge Gorge Blists Hill site
The industrial heritage of Ironbridge | © Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust.

From spring 2026 we have taken on the care and management of the places that represent the birthplace of the industrial revolution within the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site in Shropshire.

Ironbridge Gorge

The Ironbridge Gorge is a globally-important UNESCO World Heritage site, meaning it is recognised internationally as being ‘of outstanding value to humanity’, comprised of buildings, structures and artefacts of international, national and local significance.  

Ten museum sites within the Gorge, including Blists Hill Victorian Town and Enginuity, have transferred into our care from their previous custodian, the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust (IGMT). 

Investment

The transfer has been made possible thanks to £9 million investment provided by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). We are also grateful to The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England for funding and ongoing support throughout the process. 

Our goal is to grow the number of people that visit Ironbridge Gorge’s sites, tackle the barriers that often prevent people from engaging with heritage and continue and deepen the site’s strong appeal for families through events, programming and storytelling that bring its unique history to life. 

Ironbridge Gorge is widely regarded as the birthplace of the industrial revolution, which paved the way for the scientific and technological innovation that defines our world today. The site is an example of British ingenuity, a source of immense national and community pride and a distinct and much-loved icon of our shared heritage. I cannot think of something more at home in the National Trust's care - an institution built to protect and preserve the things our nation loves on behalf of everyone, everywhere.

A quote by Hilary McGradyNational Trust Director-General

Ironbridge Gorge 

We have begun the process of re-opening Ironbridge Gorge, visit the website for more details

Telford, Shropshire

Fully open today
Image taken from a drone high over Blists Hill, Ironbridge, Shropshire. Brick buildings with rusting iron roofs are in the lower left hand corner of the image. Long disused Victorian brick built furnaces are in the top right.

School visits to Ironbridge Gorge 

Discover how to book your educational visit to Ironbridge Gorge

A woman in Victorian costume holds a heavy horse collar. Next to her stands a huge Shire horse called George.

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