At Kids Invent Stuff we’ve spent 10 years bringing children’s invention ideas to life on our YouTube channel and for 2026 we teamed up with Enginuity to embark on a big new challenge; To build a permanent STEM venue and invention exhibition in South Yorkshire.
Enginuity are a charity focused on closing the skills gaps in engineering and manufacturing and like us they seek to enable as many young people as possible to explore opportunities around engineering and invention – Making them the perfect partner for this project.
Together with funding from Innovate UK, we set out to build The Invention Shed at Gulliver’s Valley Resort near Rotherham. Gulliver’s Valley is a popular family theme park destination that attracts a large number of visitors every year. Our team designed the space in collaboration with Enginuity and we worked to craft a truly unique venue that could celebrate some of the most exciting kids’ inventions we’ve made, whilst providing interactive opportunities to spark curiosity and show young people that engineering and manufacturing is something they can actively take part in.
Visitors to the Invention Shed can explore practical workshops and hands-on exhibits, discover the stories behind the physical inventions in the space and be in with a chance to have their own invention ideas brought to life!
Alongside invention challenges, we deliver a range of hands-on STEM activities, including Chocolate Welding, Cardboard Prototyping and other creative making workshops. This creates a powerful journey for young inventors; from having their own unique idea, to designing it, building it, testing it and potentially seeing it become a real working invention!
Our partnership with Enginuity
As a key part of our partnership, Enginuity co-created a dedicated interactive area within The Invention Shed, showcasing the world of engineering and manufacturing to visitors through playful, hands-on experiences and digital games.
Enginuity’s area features Enspire City, an interactive virtual experience that explores how engineering and manufacturing shape the world around us. Through fun challenges, children exploring Enspire City discover the role engineering plays in everyday life and in building a better, brighter future.
Find out more about our partnership with Enginuity in this interview with Nicola Dolan, Associate Director of Charity Operations and Impact at Enginuity:
Shaped by feedback
We designed the Invention Shed to be able to evolve over time to suit the needs of our visitors. Feedback from young people therefore plays an important role in helping us to shape the Shed’s visitor experience over time; allowing us to record what captures children’s attention, what encourages them to engage in different activities and what we should seek to improve in the future.
A large number of families, schools and home education groups have visited the space since it opened in July 2026 and kids seem to love The Invention Shed. Hearing this reflected in their feedback has been hugely rewarding for all of us involved in bringing the space to life. You can find out more about the venue and what kids thought of it in this video:
Our Kids Invent Stuff Co-Founder Ruth Amos has the following to say about the Invention Shed: “We’ve never had a dedicated space we can deliver activities from before, so this is such a great opportunity for us. Whilst we will continue to be working in schools, venues and at events around the country, we’re thrilled to have a permanent base where we can deliver additional activities from!”
Our partnership with Enginuity allowed this ambitious project to happen, bringing together two organisations with a shared ambition: To help more children see themselves as future engineers, inventors and makers.
For us, The Invention Shed provides a permanent home for us to share our unique approach to STEM engagement. For Enginuity it creates another engaging route into the world of engineering and manufacturing, helping children understand that creativity and problem-solving lie at the heart of these industries. And for young people who visit the Invention Shed, it offers the chance to learn and celebrate that their ideas matter and that bringing them to life can make for some of most fun, meaningful and rewarding future careers.
The Invention Shed is open to all guests visiting Gulliver’s Valley Resort and forms part of the wider visitor experience at the theme park. We can’t wait to see you there!