Using the theme of ‘underground’ as our focus, we have spent a week in the area, going down a coal mine and into caverns, so we are looking at pottery from the perspective of clay from the ground. We had a 10-minute session about the archaeology of the site here, including a video of when the BBC’s Time Team came to excavate while the modern part of Ceramica was being built.

I like the mix of hands-on activities and gathering information. There is something here for all abilities. We have two children with statements in the group and they have been included, being able to experience things at their level, while those with high ability can explore the ideas and activities further, such as understanding the reasons behind the interactive computer program for the bottle oven. Luckily we have a boy, Ryan, who is a descendant of James Brindley, who used to navigate the Trent-Mersey canal, so we have been particularly interested in the historical links. The staff here encouraged Ryan to talk about the connection and it helped bring it alive.