Explore, play and discover at Campus in the City


Child reaching for piece of science equipment at a previous Campus in the City event © Robin Zahler.

Lancaster University brings its popular Campus in the City festival back to Morecambe this Easter, offering a full day of free, hands‑on activities for families. The event takes place on Friday 10 April, from 10.30am to 4pm at More Music in Morecambe.

Families can explore 16 different activities, all designed and delivered by Lancaster University researchers. Meet the people behind the work and dive into hands‑on activities, games, experiments, colouring, virtual‑reality adventures, crafts and much more. Children and adults can try everything from meeting a humanoid robot to taking part in health‑themed activities at the Teddy Bear Hospital, experiencing the Northern Lights through virtual reality or exploring Wordsworth’s Lake District in Minecraft.

Campus in the City has become one of Lancaster University’s most popular community events, offering families the chance to get hands‑on with real research in a relaxed, friendly setting. It’s part of a commitment to being an active civic university, bringing its work into the heart of the community and making research accessible, enjoyable and relevant for everyone.

Activities will enable visitors to:

· Be a doctor for a day at the Teddy Bear Hospital - bring your teddy for a check‑up, treat bumps and scrapes with toy stethoscopes and bandages, and for older children shrink to cell‑size in a virtual reality journey through the heart, lungs and bloodstream.

· Meet a real humanoid robot - interact with friendly robots QT and Miko and chat to researchers about the tech behind them.

· Explore a Minecraft world inspired by Wordsworth - roam a custom Lake District world built from the poet’s writing.

· Build penny‑power batteries - stack everyday materials to create a working mini‑battery and see electricity in action.

· Take on an AI face‑spotting challenge - test your detective skills by deciding which faces are real and which have been created by artificial intelligence.

· Watch Morecambe then‑and‑now in a seaside cinema -enjoy a short film mixing rare historic footage with modern stories, then get hands‑on with creative seaside activities.

· Handle 3D‑printed snake fangs - explore the Snake Lab, try bite‑testing with fake blood, meet a robot snake and uncover surprising snake facts.

· Make pipe‑cleaner brain cells - craft colourful neurons and learn how babies’ and children’s brains make sense of the world.

· Try quick‑fire coding experiments - take on simple digital challenges inspired by the award‑winning micro:bit project.

· Experience the Northern Lights in virtual reality -step into an immersive aurora above Lake Windermere and learn the science behind the colours and movement.

· Physics fun - try hands‑on physics experiments, build mini electric racers, explore gravity wells and watch live demonstrations.

· Become a space size explorer - try mini experiments to see how scientists measure stars, galaxies and the expanding universe.

· Join a coastal quest game - work together on a giant tabletop adventure to tackle future coastal challenges and see how your decisions shape the coast.

· Jump into move, make and feel great - fold calming origami, build healthy eating plates, place organs on a giant body poster and explore pretend medical scanners.

· Explore your muscles - test your own muscles, build model skeletons with playdough muscles and take on the Muscle Trivia Challenge.

· Imagine your family in the future - draw or write the people, pets and special things that matter to you, and explore how families change over time.

All activities are free and suitable for a wide range of ages, with a few best suited to children aged seven and over. No need to book, just drop in at any time and stay as long as you like.

Find out more

Plan your visit by reading the Lancaster University Campus in the City website.

Follow Campus in the City on socials: Facebook CampusintheCity.LU Instagram @campusinthecity

Sign up to the Connect Community Newsletter for updates on Campus in the City and other Lancaster University events throughout the year.

Back to News