World of Glass — Attraction in St Helens

Overall I enjoyed my visit but have deducted a star because of the really poor service being provided in the cafe. See below

The museum is free of charge which is absolutely great given what's on offer. Parking outside is pay and display and nothing to do with the museum. I've come across better payment systems but it was ok.

Once inside we paid extra to watch a live glass blowing demonstration - check the prices on the website. This was excellent and well worth the money. The live commentary by the staff member was fun and informative. It being the school holidays there were quite a few young children/teenagers there and they were as fascinated by the process as the more mature visitors. The session ended up with a lively question and answer session.

As well as the galleries inside, it's worth crossing the bridge across the canal to visit the Victorian Furnace and Underground Tunnels.

So, a really positive experience so far but spoiled by our experience in the cafe. We'd travelled an hour or so to get there. I'd read about the cafe and always enjoy a nice coffee/cake in a museum cafe; and after an hour and a half enjoying the the museum we headed off for a brew and a bite to eat.

It was the sort of experience one unfortunately experiences increasingly in England nowadays. It didn't seem particularly busy but there were several tables which hadn't been cleared and while we tried to find somewhere to sit a rather hassled member of staff approached us and told us we'd have to wait 40 minutes for anything we ordered. I found it hard to understand why but I can only guess they were understaffed. To be fair, a visitor I spoke to on the way in told me the cafe was great, she'd been a few times, so perhaps we were just unlucky.

We spoke to a volunteer and explained that we needed somewhere to eat and they suggested trying the cafe in St Helens Market just across the road. So we went there instead. And were served immediately, a hot lunch arriving at our table shortly after.

It's a shame but it didn't spoil our overall enjoyment of our visit to the museum and I'll keep an eye out for new...

I visit just for the cafe. Free to use the cafe, and it serves one of the best low cost lunches in town. Kids amusement area right next to cafe. Take the kids/grandkids, you won't regret it.

Ron has gone. It's gone downhill since he left. Chaotic would be a suitable word, so I can't predict what it will be like when you visit. Staff will be confused with the ever changing rules of the new 'manager'. Kids amusement area gone. It's an art gallery for local friends. Food.... Don't blame the staff, they're told a different way to do things each day. It's a real life soap opera.

Cafe menu getting smaller and smaller. Buscuits and cakes gone. Staff looking glummer and glummer. It's being run down. Still hoping for the locals visit the art gallery.

If the owner is unaware of the change of atmosphere of the restaurant staff, he's probably part of the problem. The cafe and the staff were happy, eager to serve and please customers. It's now a sombre go through the motions place. Petty rules are brought in each week, with a new set the following week. This gives the impression that it's being run down, made unattractive to both staff and customers.

Ron was never my friend, he ate each day in the cafe. He talked to the customers, and appeared to want to make the staff and the customers happy. There was a pleasant atmosphere. Ron and I did not always agree, but we always parted with a smile. I could see he wanted the best for the staff and customers.

I've spoken to the new manager. He advised "I'm not interested". I've never seen him eat in the cafe. I've never heard a word of encouragement or praise to the staff.

I hope the investment can improve the atmosphere in the cafe.

I still visit, the menu is simplified/changed on every visit, of course the menu isn't reflected on the picture till, so there is confusion whilst the nearest to menu picture is selected. The choice is then written on a paper chitty, and passed to the kitchen. Dependent on the kitchen staff reading skills, a surprise may be brought to the table. It's a scene that would fit into a 1960s...

Tuesday 25th February 2025

The World of Glass is a local museum and visitor centre in St Helens, Merseyside. The museum is dedicated to the local history of the town and borough primarily through the lens of the glass industry but also looking at other local industries.

The World of Glass was founded in 2000 and is an amalgamation of the former Pilkington Glass and St Helens Borough Council collections. The purpose-built premises was constructed adjacent to the Pilkington's glassworks and the stretch of the St Helens Canal known as the "Hotties".

In the early 1990s, Pilkingtons undertook the £1 million restoration of the Grade II-listed Pilkington's Jubilee Cone building, a brick cone structure built in 1887 to house the first ever continuous glass making furnace. Following the restoration, Pilkingtons floated the idea of utilising now redundant adjacent factory space (known locally as "The Hotties") as a museum for its historic glass collection.

The museum has two main galleries - the Glass Roots Gallery and the Earth into Light Gallery. The first is concerned with the history of glass, its role in everyday life, and contains artefacts that date back as far as Ancient Egypt. The second tells the story of the growth of the town of St Helens as it moved from relative insignificance to become a world leader in glassmaking.

There are live glassblowing demonstrations daily and visitors can try the art of glassblowing on one of their courses.

I highly recommend a visit to this museum. A good family day out for both young and old. School parties also welcome. Disabled accessibility, toilets available, a café on site and Car parking available (Current charges as of...