Stoke-on-Trent Staffordshire ST6 3PE
Middleport Pottery is the last continuously operational pottery in the UK. Burgess and Leigh have been producing pottery in this factory since 1889, and continue to use many of the same methods and machinery today as they did when the factory was first built.Here students can walk in the footsteps of those before them and understand the history of the potteries, its people and how this shaped both the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the world. Your students can take part in creative workshops based on skills from the potteries and historical tours including visiting the inside of a Bottle Oven!
We can also focus on other aspects of the local area, such as James Brindley and the canal system that revolutionised transport. This could include a trip on our historic narrowboat 'Dane' winner of the National Historic Ships, Flagship of the Year Award in 2025, or our canal art workshop.
We offer both half and full day visits with a wide choice of led workshops and tours depending on your curriculum focus. All our sessions are led by our experienced Learning Team, assisted by dedicated learning volunteers.
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What activities are available during educational visits?
Heritage Trail ~ Suitable for all age groups - The students are taken on a guided tour of the historic areas of the site.
Factory Tour ~ Only available if all students are over 8 years old due to safety restrictions- Students are taken on a guided tour of the working Burleigh Factory.
Virtual Factory Tour and Object Handling ~ Suitable for all ages - Students are guided through a video tour of the Burleigh factory, during which the class can get hands on with some of the objects that they can see on the screen.
Clay Workshop ~ Suitable for all age groups - A hands-on workshop where students are given a chance to make something from air-dry clay. The objects they make can be taken away with you.
Stokie Story Workshop ~ Suitable for KS1 & KS2 - An interactive storytelling session set at Middleport Pottery.
Print Making Workshop ~ Suitable for all age groups - A hands-on workshop where the students replicate the potteries tissue transfer process. Both tile and print can be taken away with you.
Canal Workshop ~ Focusing on canal history and James Brindley - A hands-on workshop where students get to try rope making with wool and canal art on their own mini bucket. Both items can be taken away with you.
How we lived at Harper Street ~Suitable for all age groups - a guided tour of our 1950's Lodgekeeper's House and an age appropriate workshop (enquire for further details).
Narrowboat Trip ~ (Additional Cost) - A short trip along the Trent & Mersey Canal on our historic narrowboat Dane.
Please contact us to confirm availability due to limited running.
Plate Painting ~ (Additional Costs) - Students can design and paint a ceramic plate. Painted with Acrylic Paint and sealed (not food safe) or painted with underglaze colour, then glazed and fired.
Factory Tour ~ Only available if all students are over 8 years old due to safety restrictions- Students are taken on a guided tour of the working Burleigh Factory.
Virtual Factory Tour and Object Handling ~ Suitable for all ages - Students are guided through a video tour of the Burleigh factory, during which the class can get hands on with some of the objects that they can see on the screen.
Clay Workshop ~ Suitable for all age groups - A hands-on workshop where students are given a chance to make something from air-dry clay. The objects they make can be taken away with you.
Stokie Story Workshop ~ Suitable for KS1 & KS2 - An interactive storytelling session set at Middleport Pottery.
Print Making Workshop ~ Suitable for all age groups - A hands-on workshop where the students replicate the potteries tissue transfer process. Both tile and print can be taken away with you.
Canal Workshop ~ Focusing on canal history and James Brindley - A hands-on workshop where students get to try rope making with wool and canal art on their own mini bucket. Both items can be taken away with you.
How we lived at Harper Street ~Suitable for all age groups - a guided tour of our 1950's Lodgekeeper's House and an age appropriate workshop (enquire for further details).
Narrowboat Trip ~ (Additional Cost) - A short trip along the Trent & Mersey Canal on our historic narrowboat Dane.
Please contact us to confirm availability due to limited running.
Plate Painting ~ (Additional Costs) - Students can design and paint a ceramic plate. Painted with Acrylic Paint and sealed (not food safe) or painted with underglaze colour, then glazed and fired.
Which curriculum topics do we cater for?
Art
Printmaking Sculpture Design Craft Drawing Painting
Art and Design was crucial to the potteries, using different mediums and workshops we can help engage your students with creative learning activities such as printmaking, pattern design, heritage art styles such as canal art, 3d sculpting with clay and more. All of our artistic workshops are inspired by past designers, which can be seen in our designers room and processes that were integral to the development of the Pottery industry.
Local History School Trip
Discover how and why a small collection of villages became a hub of industry, how coal and clay created a legacy of craft excellence that continues today, and how the people of the city made a lasting impact. From the importance of James Brindley and his canal system, Wedgwood and whiteware, to designer Charlotte Rhead the importance of Stoke-on-Trent and it's potteries cannot be overlooked. Amazing crafts, innovation and worldwide trade all combine in this amazing place to explore.
Victorian School Trip
Factories and The Workhouse Industrial Revolution
History and creativity come together in the last continuously operating Victorian pottery in the UK. From tours around the still working factory, which produces its ware on original machinery and the dedicated heritage areas, to learning about the daily life of a worker and the dangers of working life in the potteries during the Victorian period. Discover how the pottery industry thrived and expanded under the British Empire, making teapots for the booming tea market and selling ware around the world, with designs inspired by what they discovered.
Industrial School Trip
Work and the Factory system Transportation
Built during the hights of the second Industrial Revolution in 1888, Middleport Pottery is a Grade 2* listed Victorian factory. Our workshops allow students to walk around a factory site still operating in much the same way as it did when first built. As the last continuously operating pottery in the UK, it is a unique chance to see a working factory designed with the ideas and innovations of the Industrial revolution. Built alongside the Trent and Mersey Canal, and later the railway line, and powered by Steam engine Middleport Pottery really epitomises the industrial revolution in the potteries.
What size groups do we cater for?
Maximum class size is 65 pupils per day
On-site classroom facilities?
We have a dedicated Learning Centre that you will be based in during your visit
Is there first aid on site?
We have trained first aiders onsite and all members of the Learning Team are trained First Aiders
Access for visitors with disabilities
We do offer access for visitors with disabilities where possible within the restrictions of our Grade 2* listed site. Our site has cobbled paths and uneven surfaces, but is wheelchair accessible. Please contact us for more specific details depending on what workshops you are interested in.
Visitors with Special Educational Needs (SEN)
Many of our workshops are already SEN friendly, or we have adaptations in place to accommodate SEN needs. We do also provide outreach to SEN schools if required for some of our workshops. Our Learning Officer was SEN lead at her former school when teaching before she retired, and so has a wealth of experience in SEN education. Please contact us to discuss your needs which workshops you are interested in and we will get back to you.
Who are Middleport Pottery?
Middleport Pottery is a charity-owned heritage visitor attraction located in the heart of Stoke-on-Trent. Situated next to the Trent & Mersey canal it was built by Burgess & Leigh in the late nineteenth century.
Middleport Pottery is Grade II*-listed and is the UK's last working Victorian potbank in continuous production, and after 130 years it remains the home of world-famous Burleigh Pottery.
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