The Science Museum’s Inspired project is one of six candidates bidding for £50m from the Big Lottery, to be voted for by the British public later this year via a televised vote. The funding is vital to secure Inspired’s future as a brand new type of interactive museum.

Due to open in 2010, Inspired will be an important stimulus for young people, essential in shaping the UK’s science future by providing a hot-house for inspiring scientists, engineers, inventors, creators, and designers.

Reliance on technology escalates every day, yet the number of young people opting for scientific careers is diminishing. A recent study of 11,000 pupils aged 11-15 years found that 80 per cent thought that scientists did “very important work” but entries for A-levels in sciences and mathematics has been in serious decline since 1996, particularly physics which was down by over 5,000 entries and maths by over 10,000 entries in 2005. 

The knock on effect will lead to a significant gap in the scientific generation which will start to become clear in the next 10 years, for example 50 per cent of the UK’s current physics teachers will retire. Also as a result of this lack of interest in Science, there have been 79 closures of university science departments in the past seven years.  The Science Museum is asking the public to take the matter into their own hands by supporting Inspired which will play a major role in injecting the fun back into science and making it accessible for all.

The £64m world-class attraction will be environmentally friendly with energy provided by renewable source and a super-insulated structure, and a sympathetic design blending in with the surrounding landscape.

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