Journey's to the Future
The aims of the project have been to explore the heritage and history of Small Heath, with a particular emphasis on the stories of the people who live and/or work in the area. The project reflects the multitude of stories and histories that have now come to characterise and define the area, and explores Small Heath's beginnings and change over time. The project's philosophy has been to offer an inclusive approach to history - reflecting both longer established communities and more recently settled ones.
The project has created an exhibition entitled ‘Journeys to the Future', and uploaded these stories and histories onto the ‘Beyond the School' (www.beyondtheschool.org.uk) website. This website provided by the Centre for Modern Education contains several similar heritage project presentations from the UK and Europe as well as information about how to start such a project. Additionally, Waverley School also held an event on Thursday, 30th, April, where school pupils, staff, and members of the community came to together to speak and learn about the project and the diverse communities that reside in Small Heath. It was the first formal viewing of the exhibition. The exhibition will then tour local venues including Small Heath Library (over the school summer holiday), St Benedict's Church, and Birmingham Central Mosque. A programme for the touring exhibition is currently being devised.
Finally, to promote the project, the event and the touring exhibition, the school was invited onto the Carl Chinn radio show, ( Radio WM ) on Sunday 26th April, 2009, where the participating students, teachers, and project leaders - talked about the project's activities, events, exhibitions, and related issues. The whole project was implemented thanks to financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Learn more about the project or get to see the exhibition by contacting Waverley School for further details; Mrs Lisa Peterkin or Mr Ian Healey - 0121 464 1780.
Graphical design of the exhibition, invitiation and other materials - Signatura s. r. o., Johana Kratochvilova, www.signatura.cz, johana@signatura.cz