Three new exhibitions have been launched at a museum in time for the final weeks of the school summer holidays.

Swindon’s STEAM Museum, which is running its ‘Kids for a Quid’ offer throughout the holidays, is celebrating the original Great Western Railway's (GWR) emergency services.

The Stop Police! exhibition explores the history of policing on the railways, beginning with the early police officers who directed trains using semaphore signals, to today’s British Transport Police.

The exhibition features GWR truncheons, uniform badges, police signs and documents from the museum’s archive collection.

Frances Yeo, Swindon museums manager, said: "I’m delighted that we’re able to showcase more of our fantastic collections with these three exhibitions related to the GWR’s emergency services.

"In our Stop Police! exhibition, we’ve been able to include a new acquisition, a police helmet badge, purchased with assistance from the Friends of Swindon Railway Museum."

Fire Fire, the second exhibition, focuses on the evolution of firefighting on the GWR network.

Visitors will learn about the transition from horse-drawn fire pumps to motorised Dennis fire engines and the role of firefighting during World War Two.

Younger visitors can also have a go at matching modern and vintage fire equipment in an interactive display.

The last exhibition, Is it Safe?, looks at GWR’s efforts to prevent accidents on the railways and provide lifesaving help when incidents occur.

The exhibition tells the story of the St John Ambulance and the GWR Safety Movement through original images and objects from the museum's collection.

Ms Yeo said: "It’s great that our Is It Safe? exhibition showcases some of the tremendous images from our photographic collections, including some, often comical, images showing how the GWR tried to keep people safe on the railways.”

The museum’s hands-on drop-in sessions are also available throughout the summer holidays, from bridge building to object handling, as well as a Lego Brick Explorer Day.

Councillor Marina Strinkovsky, Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet member for planning and placemaking, said: "Kids for a Quid is a fantastic way to have a brilliant day out in our museums, which is a great day out for anyone.

“The bridge building activity is always super popular, and the object handling is a chance to get up close to the objects in our collections - a personal favourite of mine as I always wanted to touch everything in museums when I was little."