It’s Life but not as we know it

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Newcastle’s Centre for Life is changing the way we all learn about science… and bringing new life into the world

When the Centre for Life in Newcastle only existed in embryo form, there was nothing like it in the rest of the country, no model for what the team behind the pioneering initiative wanted to create.

“There were hands-on science centres, but they did little biology; there were science business parks, but they were not open to the public; there were dedicated genetic education facilities, but not in Britain,” recalls co-founder and former chairman Matt Ridley.

“What current chairman Alastair Balls, chief executive Linda Conlon and their team did was put together all these ingredients and more – entertainment, education, enterprise, clinical practice and cutting-edge research – on one freely-accessible city-centre site, independent but with partnerships with other institutions, and self-supporting.”

“Reaching out to the next generation is central to the work of Life,” says Linda Conlon. “The spontaneity and joy of discovery is sometimes lost, but we’re trying to keep youngsters in particular switched on to science.”

The centre’s education mantra is: hands on, hearts on, minds on. “A visit to the centre has to make you think, it’s got to mean something to you,” explains head of education Noel Jackson. “We have to engage the brain and create an emotional attachment if we’re to promote deep learning that the child remembers forever.”

“We’re here to inspire and spark creativity – it’s important we enthuse young people about science”

The Centre’s schools’ programme aims to provide science education that cannot be replicated in the classroom, and Lifelab, a key part of the programme, is now the largest provider of formal taught science workshops in Europe, providing over 40,000 educational experiences to school students every year.

did you know?

• Around 200,000 visitors a year experience exciting and hands-on science at Life
• Over 500 people from over 30 countries work at Life
• More than 3,000 babies have been born with help from the NHS Newcastle Fertility Centre at Life
• In 2005, scientists based at Life were the first group in the world to successfully clone a human embryo