1.  EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

  1.1  Glasgow Science Centre (GSC) is one of the largest science centres in the UK. Its current operations are supported by grant funding from the Scottish Executive based on an output based performance model. Like all science centres around the world, GSC could not have sustained its full operations without such support.

  1.2  As one of the four science centres in Scotland forming the Scottish Science Centres Network GSC has been able to contribute in volume and quality to the advancement of the science in society agenda and to science education. In the 2005-06 year GSC engaged with 50% of all secondary schools in Scotland and 46% of all primary schools with the 18 LEAs in Glasgow and surrounding areas. GSC supported schools from all but one of the LEAs in Scotland. In addition GSC engaged with over 300,000 public visitors in a wide range of science-related activities.

  1.3  The direct and indirect outputs of GSC are all of importance to science in society, innovation, motivation, inspiration of all to understand more of the world around us. The knowledge economy of the 21st century is dependent upon citizens who are comfortable with and enthusiastic about science and what it can do for us. We also need to be able to sustain informed debate as new science developments bring forward new challenges for us as a society. GSC is an example of a science centre that encourages, supports, motivates and inspires people of all ages to engage in science and technology. As part of the lifelong learning environment GSC provides a focus on science and technology for all that goes beyond the boundaries of the centre through outreach activities in communities and schools around the country. The financial support provided through Scottish Executive funding has ensured that GSC can continue to deliver the high quality experiences that meet essential public policy targets. Other science centres in the UK currently lacking such support are at risk and therefore the wellbeing of the UK in its science and innovation strategies for the 21st century are also at risk.

  1.4  GSC welcomes the review by the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee and recommends that support is given to science centres throughout the UK.

2.  BACKGROUND

  2.1  Glasgow Science Centre (GSC) is one of the four Science Centres within the Scottish Science Centres Network (SSCN) and one of the largest science centres in the UK. All SSCN centres are exemplars of good science communication taking complex scientific concepts and distilling them into understandable and relevant information for the general public and schools audiences.

  2.2  The SSCN is an excellent resource in support of government aims and objectives in respect of science, science education, technology and innovation and public engagement reaching approximately 700,000 individuals per annum. Each of the four centres has its own set of resources with related objectives and actions but all operate within the common framework of the SSCN Strategy published in 2005.

  2.3  The SSCN exists as a result of recurrent grant support having been made available from Scottish Executive. The failure of "The Big Idea" centre at Irvine was a catalyst for action to preserve remaining science centres in Scotland. It was realised that substantial capital resources and their availability to support science and technology education and public engagement were at risk in all of the remaining four centres.

Like most science centres around the world they had been created with reasonable capital investment but no revenue funding available other than what they could generate from their own activities. The analysis conducted by independent consultants showed that the remaining four centres could contribute significantly to support of public policies in a number of important areas and therefore some financial support through grant funding was justified.

  2.4  The creation of SSCN with four centres that have some financial stability and planning horizons beyond survival through the current year has enabled more creative, consistent and higher quality activities to be developed within and outside the centres. In each case, overall engagement levels have improved in volume terms with substantial enlargement of partnership networks through which leveraged benefits have also been gained.

  Sharing of resources, activities, training and development are all now routine since there is good reason to help each other improve the overall science experience on a continuing basis and consistently across the country. School teachers need reliable and high quality support in dealing with science and technology at all levels with long-term certainty of availability. SSCN can now provide this and therefore create a strategic and effective educational support network that adds real value and brings experiences to school children that are hands on, immersive, curriculum linked, inspirational, motivational, contemporary and that individual schools and teachers would find difficult and in many cases impossible to replicate.

  Adult engagement is similarly supported through sharing and joint development. A good example being the "Molecular Machines" science/art exhibition created by GSC in conjunction with MRC but shared with Our Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh for public display.

  This innovative view of complex organisms reaches new audiences in new ways and through network support can reach the whole country, something that would not have been possible without the committed financial support from Scottish Executive. There are many examples of such cooperation, but this is also an early stage of development of the network so much more will emerge in national coverage as work continues.

  2.5  The SSCN provides a unique and well placed conduit to mass communication, engagement and support for science and innovation that is already the envy of many but we recognise there is much more that can be done and must be done to maximise the benefits of that capacity for national interests. We look forward to other centres throughout the UK receiving some ongoing recognition of and support for the very valuable work done in communicating science and supporting economic and societal development.

3.  GLASGOW SCIENCE CENTRE

  3.1  Glasgow Science Centre:

—  raises awareness of science and technology developments and associated issues affecting society;

—  provides enrichment experiences in support of formal education in school, college and university programmes;

—  develops and implements new and effective learning and teaching in support of contemporary sciences and their applications and implementations;

—  engages and motivates interest in science and technology by all sectors of society;

—  helps develop public understanding of science and technology matters and encourages intelligent debate, analysis and choice;

—  takes actions that are complementary to and supportive of mainstream education and lifelong learning policies and programmes;

—  engages interest in STEM topics in early years and throughout life;

—  demonstrates the relevance of Science/Technology in social, economic, environmental and political contexts;

—  catalyses new actions to encourage science and technology as career choices and to help in making all individuals contributors to Smart Successful Scotland; and

—  co-ordinates actions within SSCN and with third-party service providers to avoid duplication and maintain high standards of science communication activities.

  3.2  GSC also has an economic/social mission but as a matter of principle all science centres should. The £76 million investment in creating GSC on what was a derelict riverside site was intended to be a catalyst for regeneration in the area. Other new developments in the area are now taking place and the overall area will become a high amenity destination within Glasgow. However, it has taken six years since the construction of GSC for these new developments to take place and the "loss-leader" issues for GSC during that period were not factored in to the overall planning. The grant funding provided to GSC from the Scottish Executive has ensured the full operation of the centre and therefore the retention of its catalyst effects in regeneration of the area in addition to its clearly defined outputs and outcomes associated with science and technology.

  3.3  GSC has an annual profile of activity as follows:

—  265,000 visitors to Science Mall.

—  145,000 visitors to IMAX Cinema.

—  85,000 visitors to live theatrical shows.

—  50,000 visitors to ScottishPower Planetarium.

—  30,000 visitors to Glasgow Tower.

—  30,000 visitors to interactive workshops.

—  80,000 children in school programmes.

—  13,500 communities visitors.

—  24,000 events visitors.

4.  WHY SCIENCE CENTRES?

  4.1  One of the key strengths of Science Centres is as a conduit for information dissemination and diffusion. The model of engagement with school children and members of the public makes us unique in being barrier free and appealing to all ages, social backgrounds and educational levels; a key requirement for any actions intended to change perceptions of science in society.

  4.2  Science centres are centres for lifelong learning that are very effective elements of the lifelong learning, social, economic and development infrastructure that is essential to the success of the knowledge economy of the UK now and into the future. GSC has a clear focus on the lifelong aspects of science and technology learning that are necessary to ensure our population is well equipped to live and work in the contemporary world and to adapt to changes in our future world.

  4.3  To develop a sustainable science nation requires a dramatic cultural change. This cannot be achieved overnight and requires a generational impact—much as we have seen in the last 10 -15 years regarding green issues. Without informing and stimulating the minds of our children we are destined to reinforce the negative stereotypes of the current generation (with continued falling numbers of teachers, scientists and associated disciplines and activities).

  4.4  We have museums that are generally very well attended and within which it is routinely expected we will be able to learn and explore much about what has led us to our current state as a society. Those institutions are mostly fairly well endowed and supported operationally from the public purse enabling them to be free of charge to school and public visitors.

  It is a sign of our advanced society that our cultural history is so readily and freely available to our whole population. There is, however, an irony that science centres within which we can learn and explore much about our future and develop our knowledge and skills to be valuable participants and responsible citizens in that world are only available to those with the ability to pay. A balance needs to be found that recognises science and technology as essential and high value aspects of our society that we must encourage everyone to engage with.

  4.5  By promoting the day to day benefits of science and the positive impact it can have on our lives (but in a challenging and engaging way), science centres can be complementary to traditional methods of promotion and also support other major government initiatives such as the promotion of healthy lifestyle.

  4.6  If science is to be regarded as a mainstream topic, it cannot be considered in isolation. The impact and advantage of science and scientific thinking is that it inter-relates with all other subjects. No facets of everyday life are unaffected, all of societal development is conditioned by the environment in which that society exists and for the UK that is a technology enabled and dependent one.

  4.7  Recent reports from OECD and the ATLAS project have shown that the UK compares poorly with competitor countries in intermediate science skills as well as take-up of science and technology as advanced study and career choices. Countries such as India and China have very large numbers of graduates in science each year with very high standards being achieved and increasingly acknowledged as of global standard.

  Although a "numbers" game should not drive our strategies we should take serious heed of the comparison that in the UK most employers find it very difficult to recruit the numbers of qualified science and technology staff they need to maintain local services. All evidence suggests that in the knowledge age we are becoming seriously short of knowledge workers.

  The shortage is very evident in the population of school teachers where in some subjects it is becoming almost impossible to fill vacancies. In primary schools there are very few teachers with science qualifications. The rapid pace of development in science and technology development makes it very difficult for teachers to keep pace and properly represent contemporary issues from their own knowledge and resources.

  We must look at significant actions to support our teaching population in driving forward science interest within schools and building motivation and inspiration to pursue science as a career choice. Science centres have the advantage of being designed for mass market coverage, exciting places to visit, filled with resources and people that are inspirational and give memorable experiences.

  The investment necessary to equip all schools to the level required to match what science centres can provide is not affordable. However, some ongoing support to science centres that ensures continued availability of resources and experiences to schools and families of the quality generally provided will represent a very small proportion of education costs and return disproportionately high rewards in the acceptance of science in society and our preparedness for the future of our knowledge economy.

  4.8  The Flemish and Portuguese governments have recently committed to significant medium and long-term development of science in society and science education initiatives through science centres. Many other European countries are building new science centres to improve their overall support for science.

  China has embarked on a major science centre building programme. India has a well developed science centres network. The USA has well developed science and technology centre coverage. All of the foregoing are supported at least in part by public funding since the value of science and technology to economic and societal wellbeing in the 21st century is seen by each of these countries to be highly significant.

  4.9  In the UK we have good quality science centres that are having significant local impact and operations that are rated very well by our international competitors. However, sustainability of many of these centres is at risk as a result of gaps between the revenue that the centres can raise from their own activities and the cost of supporting those activities.

  UK government should act to support those science centres because they provide high value and necessary outputs and outcomes that align with educational, economic, cultural and society needs as determined by public policies. The impacts of these centres in educational and science in society terms are of primary importance to national wellbeing in the 21st century.

June 2006