History and Heritage
Many projects included elements of history and heritage. Usually the focus was on aspects of local history, often involving the local library, museum or archives and records office.
These projects:
- explored local history, oral history and family history, enabling older people to share memories and record these in creative ways to pass on to the younger generation - Times of Our Lives -Turner Contemporary, Hild's Jewels; Shap Intergenerational Project
- focused on local industrial heritage by involving people in cataloguing local industrial archives or restoring artefacts relating to past local industries - Mining Durham's Hidden Depths, Brough Superior - Nottingham Museum and Art Galleries
- involved people from minority ethnic groups, by drawing on their heritage and communicating their traditions, skills and experiences to people from different cultural backgrounds - Nottingham Co-Operative Community Action; Burmese and Karen Community Reporters
History, particularly local history, has been a popular aspect of adult and community learning programmes through the years. Family history has blossomed in recent years now that the internet makes it so much easier to track down records. Many people also enjoy visiting heritage sites in their leisure time, and this too can be a rich source of learning. However Transformation Fund projects moved far beyond traditional history classes, family history research and informal heritage visits, opening up new ways of engaging with history and contributing to local heritage resources.
History and heritage projects were able to:
- connect people across the generations, and open up intergenerational dialogue by sharing memories and contemporary experiences;
- connect people from different ethnic groups and cultural backgrounds, by sharing traditional skills, communicating their different experiences and learning about each other's cultures;
- enrich museum and archive collections related to local industrial heritage by drawing on the knowledge and skills of people with direct experience of employment in the industries featured; and
- create a sense of community as people recognized that their experience was important and their contributions were valued.
Individual participants gained a range of skills, including computer skills and knowledge of archives, restoration skills, communication skills both oral and written, and, in the case of projects involving minority ethnic groups, English language skills as well.
Some organisations underestimated the amount of time required to train and coordinate a team of volunteers to deal with local archives, but they found the investment worthwhile. Knowledge passed in both directions, between the professional staff of local museums and records offices and participants in the projects, benefiting everyone involved. Many volunteers recruited and trained through these projects are keen to carry on contributing in the future.
Successful projects enabled participants to contribute to shaping history and heritage, as well as learning about it. They offered flexibility, allowing people to carry out tasks related to archives in their own time and even in their own homes, making it easier for people who could not commit to regular sessions, or people with mobility problems, to contribute.
Organisations need to consider:
- the time involved in recruiting, training and coordinating volunteers to work with local history and heritage resources and archives;
- the importance of providing clear guidelines outlining the role that volunteers will play;
- the need to build partnerships with a variety of local organisations in order to engage a wide range of participants from the local community.
Individuals will need opportunities to acquire the specific skills required to carry out tasks related to history and heritage, for example:
- spreadsheet skills for people dealing with archives;
- craft skills for people helping to restore artefacts;
- communication skills for people passing on information to others; and
- English language skills for people from minority ethnic groups.
Celebration events are always valuable, allowing people to showcase what has been produced by their hard work and creating a sense of achievement for the individuals and groups involved as well as raising awareness of shared heritage across the whole community.
Britain's cultural heritage is recognised across the world and attracts millions of visitors to the UK every year. It has been enriched down the centuries, and also in recent years, by the mix of ethnic groups that have made their home in the UK and the cultures they have brought with them. However contemporary communities are often fragmented, with little communication across the generations or between different ethnic and cultural groups living in the same area. Learning about the history and heritage of local communities, and bringing to light "hidden" history and heritage related to local industries or minority groups, can help to contribute to a sense of belonging and community cohesion.
Web Links
Cultural Capital Manifesto
The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council's vision about the part that our cultural heritage can play in bringing Britain out of recession.
Black History Month
Ama Dixon - NIACE's Senior Project Officer for Race Equality - discusses the importance of Black History Month from a personal perspective.
