[3][4] In 2022, plans were submitted to expand the museum as part of the Railway Heritage Quarter.

[6] Hopetown Darlington is a 7.5 acre site encompassing the former Head of Steam (now renamed North Road Station Museum), an exhibition hall for blockbuster exhibitions, a 4D virtual reality time travel ride, an adventure playpark, a café, shop, and events field for festivals and events, as well as onsite partners including the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, NELPG, and Darlington Railway Preservation Society.

In the 1980s, it was loaned to the North Eastern Locomotive Preservation Group which restored it to working order.

It then spent several years working on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway before its withdrawal.

[11] The museum holds a large model of the Stockton & Darlington Railway which can be seen in the images below.