Top Floor

What is the Top Floor?

Open to public visitors 2-4pm Tuesday - Friday

The Top Floor is a space for people to come together to learn, share ideas, build community, and make plans. You’ll find education groups, charities, artists, writers, social enterprises, staff, and students working collaboratively with a shared commitment to environmental and social justice.

Manchester Museum is registered as a specialist education provider and a charity. We are committed to supporting people to take action on the issues they care about and together move towards a more fair and sustainable future for Manchester and beyond.

The Top Floor includes flexible and dynamic spaces prioritised for the use of our co-working partners and events and activities programmed in partnership between Manchester Museum and our communities. 

These include a classroom, seminar room, lounge, greenhouse, artist studio, therapy room, co-working desks, and a creative workshop space. We are also home to Pinc College, a Specialist College for Creative Education.

For more information about the Top Floor please contact  topfloorMM@manchester.ac.uk 

Top Floor spaces

Artist Studio

We support artists to make new connections and collaborations through our collections, partners, and communities. Our current artist-in-residence is Lucy Burscough.

Pinc College Digital Space

The Top Floor is a base for Pinc College, a specialist college for creative education that specialises in supporting neuro-divergent young people aged 16-25.

Workshop

Used regularly by Pinc College to facilitate art and design sessions, the workshop is a dynamic space for hands-on creativity.

The Therapy Room

A quiet space for wellbeing and therapy sessions. We work with the i-THRIVE programme and support a range of occupational therapy placements.

Co-Working desks

Practical workstations used by a range of staff and partner organisations with shared values to work and collaborate in a unique and inspiring setting. Co-workers also benefit from regular opportunities to network and collaborate.

Well Cases

A curated display which showcases some of the diverse learning and engagement work supported by Manchester Museum and our partners.

The Foyle Education Suite includes:

Seminar Room

A small, private learning space for up to 10 people.

Classroom

A flexible learning space for a range of activities for everyone.

Lounge

A place to meet, chat and relax.

Greenhouse

Housing a collection of living plants, the greenhouse provides inspiration and a unique setting for taking care of our natural world.

Pinc College – specialist creative education for neurodiverse young people aged 16-25

Olympias Music Foundation – a Manchester music charity, championing diversity and access to music, particularly in educational settings

Natural England – government advisors for nature recovery

Cause4 – social enterprise supporting third sector/charity fundraising and development

Hubbub – environmental campaigning charity

Ardwick Climate Action – local community-led action group

Manchester Climate Change Youth Board – youth advocacy group facilitated by MCC. Members of the Youth Board sit on the Manchester Climate Change Partnership

Untold Orchestra – collaborative ensemble with social change focus, aims to redefine orchestral music for audiences and communities in Manchester

In Place of War – a global organisation that uses creativity in places of conflict as a tool for positive change

Clean Cities Campaign – a network delivering campaigns and research to phase out petrol and diesel vehicles and prioritise active, shared and electric mobility in cities

Equal Care Co-op – the UK’s first platform-based social care and support co-operative, seeking to address structural inequalities in the social care system by piloting a new and more equitable delivery model

GM Rape Crisis – providing confidential support for women who have experienced any forms of rape or sexual violence a any time of their lives and to raise public awareness of the effects of sexual violence

Museum Development Northwest – regional hub of Museum Development England which exists to support development of the museum sector

Lucy Burscough – artist in residence

Anita Sethi – writer in residence

Occupational and art therapist student placements (in partnership with a range of HEI’s) – currently this includes Kirsty Gbasai, on placement from Sheffield Hallam where she is studying for her MA Art Psychotherapy, and University of Liverpool Trainee Occupational Therapists, Gloria Afolabi and Bethany Housley

University colleagues – the UoM Environmental Sustainability Team – leading on the university’s sustainability strategy and zero carbon target