Rocket 2030

The 200th Anniversary of the world’s first inter-city railway has huge potential for cultural and regeneration reach and impact. The story of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway has colossal opportunities to connect areas of interest around engineering, built heritage and landscape, trains, the history of many communities, and a sense of place across the North West, uniting cities, towns, and villages along the route.

A group of key stakeholders (including Science Museum Group, National Museums Liverpool, Liverpool City Council, Manchester City Council, Network Rail, Metal, and Manchester Histories) has come together to begin thinking about the opportunities of the anniversary. Manchester Histories is acting as the lead accountable organisation for the next few years.

Together with the steering groups we plan to deliver:

• Large and small-scale cultural and artistic projects and festivals.
• Improvements to heritage assets.
• Skills focus in the region on (railway) engineering and creative industries.
• Research programmes between the region’s universities in a range of subject areas.
• Increasing focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics by providing a real-world example of creative innovation.
• Improvements to transport infrastructure.
• A Community Rail Partnership (CRP) as the delivery vehicle for a legacy.

Development of these outcomes will start in January 2024, with a focus on delivering the heart of this project from October 2029 (the 200th anniversary of the Rainhill trials) to September 2030 (the 200th anniversary of the opening of the railway).

Rocket 2030 has the potential to reach very diverse audiences including those who want to celebrate and enjoy the historic and contemporary railway aspects of the anniversary, and those who want to explore its social history including the financing of the line, the (largely) Irish labour force that built it, and the impact of the railways which developed at such pace in the North of England on technology, engineering, economics. politics and culture.

Rocket 2030 will be a collaborative project – between cities and towns, between private, public and third sectors, between science and the arts, and between large institutions and grass-roots organisations, who we hope will take the lead, so that local communities can connect to the programme in a way that is most relevant to them and their place.

Rocket 2030 will look back to an extraordinary period of history for the North West, and look forward to a better connected, cleaner, greener, and more equitable approach to public transport and community assets. It will chime well with national, regional, and local aspirations for communities and with Combined Authorities’ ambition for creative industries, skilled citizens, and green engineering activity. It will allow a new focus for the visitor economy across the region, attractive to a global market.

Our key next steps are:

• To continue to collaborate with key stakeholders from culture, community, the built environment, train operations, and the visitor economy to develop a comprehensive blueprint for the 2027-2030 delivery phase.
• Establish a network of individuals and partner organisations to act as a guiding group, supporting the development and progress of the project strands. This group will convene every six months, alternating between Liverpool and Manchester.
• Submit a National Heritage Lottery Fund application to secure financial support for the project’s foundational groundwork.
• Collaborate with the network group to create a strong brand identity for the project.
• Actively seek grants and sponsorships from a diverse range of partners and donors to build a robust funding package for 2024-2027. Please contact: karen@manchesterhistories.co.uk if you would like further information or have an enquiry about the work.

The chair and vice chair for Rcoket 2030 are Paul Salveson and Jessica Bowles who will spearhead the project over the next few years. See more about Paul & Jessica HERE.