About Us
INTECH Science Centre & Planetarium is a unique, exciting interactive centre administered by the educational charity, The Hampshire Technology Centre Trust Ltd, with the specific purpose of promoting the knowledge and understanding of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
The Trust was founded in 1985 by like-minded people in business, industry and higher education in response to the local shortage of scientists, engineers and technicians. From humble beginnings INTECH Science Centre has grown into an important regional hub for informal science learning and a popular visitor attraction for schools and the general public. Annual visitors figures have grown year-on-year and at present in excess of 120,000 visitors come each year.
The INTECH Science Centre staff team consists of education, STEM and planetarium staff, an in-house workshop team, finance, marketing, corporate, admin and front-of-house staff plus a Director.
There are 18 Trustees who are leaders in their fields and greatly assist with the strategic development of the Science Centre. Our Patron is the Earl of Selborne.
INTECH Science Centre acts as an inspirational school or visitor destination. Almost all of the exhibits have been designed and built on site. The workshop team also builds exhibits for other science centres, museums and attractions.
INTECH Science Centre does not receive grant aid from Winchester City Council or Hampshire County Council - and needs to generate ticket income each year in order to pay its bills which is why an admission charge is levied.
The Aims of the Hampshire Technology Centre Trust Limited are:
“To advance the education, knowledge and understanding of the public, in particular the young, in scientific and technological principles and processes, so as to create and inspire both a new generation equipped with the skills for modern enterprise and a population more able to appreciate fully the significance of today’s increasingly complex issues”
Current Activities
Schools visiting INTECH Science Centre benefit by participating in a whole host of scientific and technological investigations and hands-on experiences which cover many areas of the curriculum. INTECH Science Centre also runs curriculum related workshops with pre-planned learning outcomes for class-sized groups on topics such as control technology, data capture and computer aided design and manufacture. The workshops can be delivered on or offsite as part of the outreach programme
INTECH Science Centre holds the ‘STEMNET Contract' for Hampshire and IOW as such it provides information and links to Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) Enhancement & Enrichment (E&E) activities. INTECH Science Centre recruits people who are willing to give their time and energy free of charge to help inspire young people in STEM; they are largely people employed in or recently retired from STEM careers and university students. INTECH Science Centre facilitates their CRB checks, maintains a database of their skills and helps to deploy them to schools and colleges – they can do this in a variety of ways from illustrating specific careers or helping with classroom activities to assisting in extracurricular activities such as clubs, challenges and competitions. The Brokerage and Ambassadors contracts are awarded by STEMNET.
INTECH Science Centre also has a wider role in the community presenting a range of fascinating lectures and science shows. The Space Lectures give visitors the chance to hear internationally renowned experts talk about their field of interest in an engaging way followed by a tour of the night sky using the planetarium. The Science Lectures are designed to be family-friendly and cover a range of topics ranging from Cloud-spotting to ‘Maggots and Murders’ – the role of insect evidence in forensics.
As well as a superb all-weather centre INTECH Science Centre offers a variety of flexible facilities for corporate meetings, conferences, launches and hospitality. The air conditioned planetarium provides a stunning setting for business presentations with its 176 tiered seats, state of the art lighting and 7.1 surround sound.
In 2002 INTECH Science Centre was re-housed into a new 3,500 square metre purpose-built, award winning building at Morn Hill, near Winchester. The multi-million pound project was funded partly through the Millennium Commission, NTL, IBM, the DfES and DTI, SEEDA and HCC.
The exciting exhibition consists of 100 hands-on exhibits, which communicate the fundamental principles of science and technology and their applications in industry and the home in a fun and interactive way.
In 2008, with the support of SEEDA, the auditorium was converted into the largest capacity digital planetarium in the UK - employing state of the art digital projection equipment and software. The planetarium programme comprises a full range of presenter-led and pre-recorded shows for schools and the general public.
The Hampshire Technology Centre Trust Ltd which runs INTECH Science Centre is an independent educational charity. Registered Charity No: 294582 Company No. 02014929
INTECH Science Centre is proud of the impact it has achieved, making the most of its limited resources. In 2010 the outstanding achievements of the team were recognised when INTECH Science Centre was awarded ‘Business of the Year’ at the Winchester Business Excellence Awards. At the same awards INTECH Science Centre also won the category ‘Business Excellence through Technology’.
