Why not check out the slideshow of images from the conference? We’ll be adding more during the week.

Click here to access it.

The final words came from Maria Adebowale, Director of Capacity Global.

She highlighted conference threads; that the heritage sector does have a social responsibility and engaging wider audiences is going to be difficult, but the more strands existent within English heritage, the richer it becomes.

The work required is about “our place” and addressing diversity, which is gender, race, disability, accent, region, how people define themselves and many other things. Additionally it includes mutuality and the removal of associated barriers.

Thanks were given to all those who have participated in making the conference work.

Selected images from the end of conference performance:

Poet-in-residence Rosie Garner and her team of ‘Text Collectors’ asked delegates to contribute their thoughts and ideas about the issues raised during the conference to create a poem that was performed as part of the closing performance.

Download a copy of the poem – ‘Already Here’. 
 

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown is an author, broadcaster and weekly columnist for the Independent and Evening Standard.

“Africans were in Britain long before the English were”, (Peter Fryer) was quoted to make the point that people are shocked by this as they don’t realise that Africans migrated to the UK along with the Romans.

Peter Fryer was someone who attempted to change and challenge the truth about black and Asian history in Britain. There’s also an untold story of Islamic slavery; in the first century after Islam, slaves were taken from the east African coast and “mercilessly abused,”. Telling one side of the story is wrong.

The next challenge is more than inclusion - it’s a very difficult conversation about history and heritage and the good and bad of it. The questions are not simply who we are and who owns our heritage, but all the tribes in our country need to ask:

“Would we be who we are without deep interactions with one another?”

Living in the West has given us freedoms, allowed us to open up our lives. Now is the time to ask some interesting questions about being open to each other.

Contrasting opinions of Britishness exist within ‘New Labour’ which need to be addressed:

• David Lammy’s view as spoken about at the conference.
• And Gordon Brown’s version, as mediated through the press.

Discussion of heritage should be approached in terms of its widest interpretation. When we buy into a collective heritage and explore it for what it is, we can understand so much more.

Click to download a soundbite from Yasmin or press play below:

Panel members included:

• Deborah Lamb, Director of Policy & Communications, English Heritage
• Judy Ling Wong, Director, Black Environment Network
• Paul Boniface, Director of Human Resources & Legal, The National Trust
• Rob Sutton, Diversity Manager, The Environment Agency
• Phillip Hedley CBE, Director Emeritus, Theatre Royal Stratford East

‘How can organisations shift their corporate thinking to embed access and diversity into all working practices?’

Ling Wong’s opinion was that organisations, as part of society, still don’t often look into the intrinsic qualities of people that drive forward diversity change, and organisations need to shift their position and see themselves as part of the community, not outside of it.

Boniface stipulated that organisations should develop a shared understanding of what is meant by ‘access’ and ‘diversity’, then adopt strategies for change that are consistent with the culture they operate within. Senior management should be committed role models.

Sutton explained the challenges faced by The Environment Agency to encompass diversity, and claimed they were tough but necessary, involving a change of image and service delivery in order to attract a range of people.

Hedley felt the process of ensuring accessibility in organisations must run through every thread of action. He quoted Martin Luther King: “Shallow understanding from well-intentioned people is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill-will.”

Audience Q & A insued. Delegates wanted more information on initiating cultural change and increasing diversity amongst the workforce.

Sutton gave examples of his organisation’s experience, such as examination and alteration of the qualification specifications for certain positions, and the re-wording of job adverts so as not to alienate certain groups of people.

One delegate raised the point that while change may be necessary, people need to experience why it is important or it’s meaningless to them.

Click to download a soundbite from Judy Ling Wong or press play below:

Click to download a soundbite from Rob Sutton or press play below:

We asked a couple of participants what they thought of the event so far. This is what they had to say:

Stacey Bains, Cultural Diversity Officer, The Herbert.

Click to download or press play below:

Karen Brookfield, Deputy Director (Policy and Research), Heritage Lottery Fund.

Click to download or press play below:

Facilitators included:

• Hamza Vayani, Chief Executive, Youth Voice
• Andy Kelly, Young Roots Coordinator, Heritage Lottery Fund
• Caroline Gleaves, Youth Arts Manager, Trafford Youth Service
• Marika Spence, performed in the community play on day one of the conference and is involved with Trafford Youth Service

It is essential to engage and inspire young people about heritage if the future is to preserve the past. The workshop looked at two issues:

Kelly spoke about the five-year grant-awarded Young Roots programme – a funding provider for young people’s heritage projects. ‘The key to obtaining grants is getting young people participating in projects from the outset.’

Points to consider when bidding include:

• What heritage skills do you have? For example, what is your equipment?
• What personal development skills (e.g. presentation) do you possess?
• What new skills (e.g. drama, dance) can you employ?

Click to download Andy Kelly’s soundbite or press play below:

Vayani presented on his work at Leicester-based Youth Voice regarding a project ‘Creating Tomorrow’s Heritage Today’. Young Roots had supported this. It reflected the cultural diversity in Leicester and found ways of involving young people from all backgrounds.

Gleaves gave a short presentation on an arts and heritage project with Quarry Bank Mill in Styal, funded by Young Roots. She stressed the importance of establishing ground rules in partnerships to help build relationships and avoid communication breakdown.

Before the workshop closed, delegates discussed the issues highlighted and gave feedback, raising points such as:

• Be clear about aims and goals
• Manage expectations from both sides
• Make the project relevant to the young people’s lives
• Make the project finite, but what is the value and sustainability beyond?
• Use appropriate specialists
• Ask young people what they want

Below are a few shots taken from the Exhibition area.

Just bumped into Rob Deeks, Project Development Worker, Aik Saath. I asked him for his feedback on how the conference is going.

Click to download Rob’s soundbite or press play below:

Workshop leaders were:

• Ruth Clarke Community Learning Manager London, The National Trust
• Nicole Crockett Director, The Building Exploratory
• Ginny Lunn Head of Policy and Development, The Prince’s Trust

The workshop started of with a group discussion around three key questions

• What is sustainability and what are the legacies?
• Who is sustainability for?
• What is the value of sustainability? (more…)