WW1: Inside the Explosives Factory

Time: Full-day (10:00 am – 2:30 pm)
Cost: £250 per class
Curriculum links:

• History: WW1, Women in Wartime, Industrial History, Social History

• Science (KS3): Chemical Reactions, Energy Changes (Exothermic Reactions), Combustion

• PSHE / Citizenship: Equality, Rights, Teamwork

Start the day inside a real historic factory building with Peggy, a WW1 munitionette, as she brings the Home Front to life. She explores what it was like to work in our explosives factory, including the perks, dangers, and its vital role in the war effort. Students take part in hands-on challenges throughout, building understanding and empathy for wartime workers.

After lunch, students take a tractor-trailer tour of the site to see the scale of wartime production and explore the chemistry behind munitions, including how different materials were combined and processed to create powerful explosive compounds used during the First World War.

The day concludes with a visit to the Main Exhibition and Armoury. Students see and handle examples of WW1 weaponry, deepening their understanding of wartime technology and prompting reflection on its devastating impact on the battlefield and on those who served.

Students see if they have what it takes to fill Peggy’s shoes as a boiler stoker.