Norden woman awarded MBE

Joan Phillips

Joan Phillips of Norden, who has worked tirelessly for 27 years to serve her charity, the Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI), has been awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire).

Origninally from Manchester, Mrs Phillips was one of the Museum’s first supporters, and helped to campaign for the preservation of what is now the Museum site and got her hands dirty working as a guard on the Museum’s railway. She also took a leading role in building up MOSI’s ‘Friends’. The Museum opened in 1983 in the buildings of the former Liverpool Road Station – the end of the line for the 1830 Liverpool & Manchester Railway, and the oldest surviving passenger railway station in the world.

Mrs Phillips was an active member of the Friends of the Museum of Science & Industry from 1984, including working on the railway and acting as the Friends Council Secretary between 1982 and 2007. She continues to work as the Friends’ Membership Secretary and is the Editor of Liverpool Road News - the Friends’ magazine. MOSI now has 145 Friends, many of whom take an active role in volunteering to help maintain the Museum and run popular attractions such as train rides using the 1830 Planet locomotive working reproduction built by the Friends and the 1830 type carriages also built by the Friends.

MOSI director Steve Davies, MBE said: “If it hadn’t been for the foresight and determination of friends like Mrs Phillips, MOSI would not exist today, and our collections related to Manchester’s role in the transport and industrial revolution would not be accessible to millions of people.

“Joan is the embodiment of the volunteering ethos which the museum community so heavily relies on, and she is deserving of formal recognition. She has demonstrated diligence and commitment beyond the call of duty, showing a level of attention to detail normally associated with a paid professional. At an age when she really ought to be living life at a more measured pace, Mrs Phillips has devoted considerable energy, vitality and sheer selfless commitment to an organisation she loves.”

The Friends of Liverpool Road Station, and later the Friends of the Museum of Science & Industry were instrumental in saving the former historic railway site for posterity. They campaigned throughout the 1970s and 1980s to keep the site preserved with its original features. The site now includes two grade one listed buildings and three grade two listed buildings, and attracts around 800,000 visitors a year. Entrance to MOSI is free apart from special exhibitions.