Life in a draughty vicarage overlooking a desolate stretch of moorland may not sound too inspiring, but the Brontes' home in 19th Century Haworth was a creative hothouse.

With his wife and two daughters already dead, Patrick Bronte was protective of his remaining four children and had them educated at home. He encouraged them to draw and write from an early age. With vivid imaginations, inspired by the rugged Yorkshire landscape beyond their window, the Bronte children created their own world.

As children, Charlotte, Emily, Branwell and Anne created fantasy worlds called Angria and Gondal - magical places where characters based on heroes and villains of the time, such as the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon, had adventures. They wrote tiny manuscripts which became the sisters' literary apprenticeship.

Now museum manager Alan Bentley plans to set up an interactive version of the fantasy worlds, enabling children to create their own characters.

He wants to recreate the cultural intensity of the house when it was a family home. And he aims to develop the outdoor area, creating a heritage trail "to view the house from a different perspective".

His vision is part of an overall plan to make the Brontes more accessible to all. And he says Bradford's Capital of Culture bid plays a key role in the plan.

"Artists in residence work with children from the city's education action zones, through our Scribblemania project, which takes inspiration from the Brontes' work," he says.

"I want to take it a stage further by making this more hands-on, giving children the same benefits of creativity that the Brontes had.

"We have to strike a balance between making the museum hands-on and preserving artefacts, but our aim is to make the house more interactive, so visitors can experience how it was when the Brontes lived here. It was a lively family house and I'd like to restore that atmosphere. I want the house to tell the story."

Education is already a big part of the museum. It is working with the church on converting the schoolroom set up by Charlotte and her father Patrick into an educational centre, and it develops lifelong learning with a scholarship scheme funded by the Bronte Society, and creative writing partnerships with Bradford and Leeds universities.

"We're more than just a museum on the hill," says Alan.

"We're very important to Bradford's Culture bid, not just because of our famous cultural heritage, but because of the tourism we generate.

"If Bradford wins it will release funds enabling organisations like us to work more co-operatively with other areas of Bradford, creating a cultural network.

"We get visitors from across the world, but we could be more accessible through improvements to things like public transport and car parking.

"Haworth is somewhere people remember from childhood trips - I came here on the steam train as a child, which my dad loved. There's something for everyone.

"I just want people to get out more, whether it's following a Bronte trail, travelling on a steam train, or going to the Bulls.

"In terms of renaissance Bradford has a long way to go, but this bid is a great opportunity to make the kind of improvements that ultimately benefit overall quality of life."