THE NEW name and new direction taken by the now rebranded National Science and Media Museum is a major step forward.

It’s particularly pleasing to see the word ‘National’ retained in its title because the museum has to draw people from across the country and the world - not just locally.

Broadening its scope by development of the science side will help attract a different type of visitor.

Science is an exciting subject for most of us and Bradford has a rich history of scientific development, particularly in the fields of medicine and technology.

The University of Bradford, indeed, brands itself as a university of science and technology.

And that level of expertise was among the chief reasons for the city to be twice chosen to host the prestigious British Science Festival in recent years.

But it must also not be forgotten that the museum’s very future was under discussion by the Science Museum Group (SMG), which runs it, as recently as 2013.

That led this newspaper to mount a concerted campaign called Stop the Cut to ensure its survival. It was supported by stellar names of film and screen as well as politicians of all colours and it demonstrated the importance of the museum in the strongest possible terms.

The changes announced today by the museum, which come with a near £2 million investment by the SMG, reinforce both its position and that of Bradford as a major visitor attraction and an important city for people from home and abroad.