Some of the organic finds from the excavations at the site of Vindolanda to the south of Hadrian’s Wall have now been put on display in a series of impressive displays in the site museum (see press release). The focus is on the wide range of objects made from wood.
The new displays have been funded through support from the HLF.
The Abbey of St Edmund Heritage Partnership has received £9,900 from the HLF to develop its interpretation of the abbey precinct (“Abbey of St Edmund project gains National Lottery backing“, St Edmundsbury Borough Council, Press Release, 8 June 2018).
It states:
The money from the Heritage Lottery Fund will help prepare for the work that will take place after those studies are completed, by enabling the Heritage Partnership to develop organisational capacity and establish an independent not-for-profit organisation. It will also be used to procure management consultancy, skills training and IT equipment and to enable lessons to be learned from the success of another project at a former Benedictine Abbey elsewhere in the country.
That in turn will mean that it will be better positioned to raise funds in the future while also developing the capacity required to deliver on major heritage and education projects.
The Partnership:
The Abbey of St Edmund Heritage Partnership is led by St Edmundsbury Cathedral in collaboration with St Edmundsbury Borough Council and representatives of Suffolk County Council, Historic England, English Heritage, the University of East Anglia, the University of Suffolk, the Bury Society and several local community groups as well as specialist architects, historians and archaeologists.
Some investigatory excavations were taking place at National Trust Sutton Hoo this last week in preparation for the construction of a viewing tower adjacent to the mound where the ship burial was excavation. This HLF funded project will enhance the public experience of what is one of the most important archaeological sites in Suffolk.
Archaeologists from MOLA have been investigating a Bronze Age ditch feature (with some contextualised pottery).
In 2015 a temporary scaffolding tower was erected to see how it changed the way that the public viewed the mounds.
Heritage Futures will be discussing the RSA Heritage Network questions in the context of ‘Suffolk Diverse Heritage‘. Heritage in Suffolk is supported by two key bodies: the Suffolk Strategic Heritage Forum, and the Ipswich Heritage Forum. We will be considering the challenges facing heritage in Suffolk, and what we can do to support, conserve, develop and interpret heritage more widely across the county.
There will be two short presentations: one on The Hold, the new heritage centre for Suffolk (funded by HLF), and the other on museums in Suffolk.
All are welcome.
The Suffolk Wildlife Trust has been awarded over £4 million to enhance Carlton Marshes near Lowestoft through the purchase of a further 348 acres of land. This will include the construction of a new visitor centre that is due to open in 2020. This will form part of the Broads National Park.
The HLF has announced that it will be awarding £10.3 million for the creation of The Hold, a new heritage centre for Suffolk. This will provide a new home for Suffolk’s archives. The project is a collaborative venture between Suffolk County Council and the University of Suffolk. The Hold will be located on the university’s marina campus in Ipswich.
The HLF had earlier awarded Stage 1 funding of £538,100 [details].
An archaeological trench was cut across part of the proposed site in August 2017.
The National Trust has been awarded £1.8 million by the Heritage Lottery Fund to enhance the visitor experience at Sutton Hoo. One of the projects will be to create a 17 m high viewing tower to give some visitors views of the burial ground. Tranmer House, overlooking the cemetery, will be the home for a new interpretative exhibition.
Portencross Castle is built on the Firth of Clyde and dates back to the 14th century. It faces the islands of Bute and (a little further away) Arran.
The castle was scheduled in 1955. It is now managed by the Friends of Portencross Castle who have been able to open up the castle with the support of HLF and Historic Scotland.
During the Second World War the castle was surveyed by Vere Gordon Childe.
HLF has published a report that demonstrates that overseas visitors to heritage attractions in the UK spent £7.4 billion (“UK PLC: New figures reveal overseas visitors to heritage are driving the UK’s tourism economy“, 24 October 2016). UK domestic overnight visitors spent £4.7 billion, and UK day trips were worth £5.3 billion. Heritage tourism is now worth £2.1 billion to the economy of Scotland.
The information is published in Economic impact of UK heritage tourism economy (2016).
An increase in tourism is likely to be one of the impacts of Brexit making heritage an even greater contributor to the UK economy.
The Long Shop Museum in Leiston has been awarded £2 million by the HLF (“Long Shop Museum in Leiston awarded lottery grant“, BBC News 19 October 2016). The works were owned by the Garrett family from the 18th century.
The grant is part of a £3 million project to transform the site (“New lease of life for world’s first assembly line“, HLF Press Release 19 October 2016). This will assist with:
Alongside vital repairs, the project will help provide an enhanced visitor experience with new activities: the creation of a reminiscence café, a community hub and a Youth Shed where young people can gain basic engineering skills and find inspiration in the achievements of Richard Garrett, his descendants and those who worked at the site.
New displays will feature the Museum’s own extensive collections – from sickles to steam engines – and draw on the Garrett Archive at Suffolk Record Office to explore the history of industry and science, tell the stories of the workers and reveal more about the lives of the Garrett family – including Elizabeth Garrett who became the first woman in Britain to qualify as a doctor.
Heritage Futures 