New Funding to Uncover and Celebrate Working Class Heritage in the East of England

These new projects will reveal and celebrate fascinating untold stories from across the East of England and beyond. Encouraging people to engage with their local heritage, these projects will support them to tell their own stories, in their own way, and to connect with others in their local communities.   

Gypsy and Traveller Tales in Greensand Country | Full House Theatre | Bedfordshire (£18,950)

This project is centred around the co-creation of a touring exhibition that tells the story of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) communities living in Greensand Country, Central Bedfordshire. Full House is a child-focused charity and arts organisation that is based in the heart of Greensand Country. The 1 year project will take place on 3 local sites, where children and families from GRT communities will be creating content alongside visiting artists, forming a body of work to be shared with the public. Listening to the voices of communities is at the centre of Full House’s co-creation process, and in the early stages of the process, they will spend time with GRT families to identify artists they would like to collaborate with. This will be an important part of developing effective creative partnerships so that communities can share the stories they want to tell. The final output will be an exhibition, co-created and curated with participants, that will tour 3 local libraries.

Lantern | The Seagull Lowestoft CIC | Lowestoft, Suffolk (£9,566)

'Lantern', a locally-produced paranormal magazine, was an important part of the Lowestoft cultural scene in the 1970s. In partnership with local people, the Seagull Lowestoft CIC will explore the buildings and stories that were featured in the magazine. They will draw out the history discovered from the paranormal investigations of the Borderline Science Investigation Group, which produced the publication. Working with a professional writer and creative team, local people will create and perform an original piece of drama exploring Lowestoft’s heritage.

Digging Down, Building Up | Peterborough Presents (part of the Nene Park Trust) | Eye, Cambridgeshire (£19,600)

'Digging Down, Building Up' will explore Eye’s brickmaking and farming heritage, uncovering the stories and voices of people who lived and worked in those industries from the early 1900s. Eye’s bricks were used in buildings across the country, including Westminster Cathedral, and continued in production until 1990. Working with the local community, Peterborough Presents (part of the Nene Park Trust) will discover and share stories through workshops, an interactive heritage trail and a lantern parade, bringing people together to create new traditions in celebration of the historic life of the village.

Ipswich Caribbean Centre Project | SPILL Festival Ltd | Ipswich, Suffolk (£10,000)

This project will recognise and celebrate the former Ipswich Caribbean Association building and the role it played in the lives of the local Caribbean community. A community centre and social club, it occupied the site at 15 to 17 Woodbridge Road from the early 1970s until 2010. The building was demolished in 2012, and the site is now a public car park. Over its 40 years of community-led operation, the centre hosted a wide range of activities and was an essential local connection to Caribbean culture and heritage. SPILL Festival’s Artistic Director Robin Deacon, whose mother emigrated to the UK from Trinidad and Tobago in the 1960s, has brought together a Steering Group of local community leaders to drive the project forward. Oral histories will draw out people’s memories and experiences of spending time at the centre, new community artworks and heritage resources will be created, and a public event will celebrate the cultural and social impact of this much-loved and missed community space.

Tooley’s Almshouses | Red Rose Chain Theatre Company | Ipswich, Suffolk (£9,889)

Tooley's Almshouses will tell the story of the Ipswich almshouses, established by the estate of wealthy merchant Henry Tooley in 1552, which transformed the lives of disadvantaged people. The project will be co-created with the Chainers Youth Theatre, an inclusive group for young people aged 13 to 21, run by Red Rose Chain Theatre Company. In heritage workshops, archive materials and the stories of people who lived in Tooley's Almshouses will be used to create the script for a new play in collaboration with a professional playwright and local historian. The group will perform the play in public performances at The Avenue Theatre and create digital resources and an exhibition based on their research. The young people will also engage with residents living in supported housing at Tooley Court, on the site of the Tudor Almshouses and Ipswich Family Bank, a volunteer organisation supporting local families.

Community-led projects

Historic England received over 380 applications and has chosen to fund 56 community-led projects across England that will explore the diverse stories of people and places at the heart of our history. The total amount of funding awarded by Historic England will be £875,000, ranging from £6,800 to £25,000 per individual project.

Wherever people live, they are surrounded by historic buildings, landscapes and streets, industrial or coastal heritage. These projects will allow people of all ages to explore these valued local places and celebrate their ‘everyday’ shared heritage.