The Gawthorpe Textiles Collection Receives Funding To Boost Digital Development In Heritage Organisations
Image Courtesy of Gawthorp Collection
Digital Skills for Heritage
Gawthorpe Textiles Collection (GTC) is among the successful organisations awarded funding by The National Lottery Heritage Fund Digital Skills for Heritage initiative, to raise digital skills and confidence across the UK heritage sector.
National Lottery funded Digital Skills for Heritage has expanded thanks to an additional £1 million from the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund.
GTC’s Lancashire’s Textile Treasures is one of 12 grants announced today, awarded to address three distinct areas; driving digital innovation and enterprise, providing answers to organisations’ most pressing concerns, and empowering collaborative work to achieve common aims.
Digital skills are more relevant and necessary than ever as heritage organisations affected by the coronavirus pandemic look toward a more resilient future.
In October 2020, The National Lottery Heritage Fund published the findings of its survey of over 4,000 staff, trustees and volunteers at 281 heritage organisations, identifying the current digital skills and attitudes of the sector.
The results highlighted what tools and training organisations needed to weather the coronavirus pandemic and move forward into a more resilient and creative future.
Lancashire’s Textile Treasures: Connecting Communities; Curating Heritage is a two year collaborative project between the Textiles Collection, University of Central Lancashire and Super Slow Way awarded £99,200
The partnership project will use heritage textiles as a catalyst for engaging and upskilling community members to become digital community curators, building connections, sharing knowledge and skills.
We will explore the cultural significance of textiles, learning from participants, creating connections and drawing out personal, cultural, social and heritage based stories.
We will also work with other heritage venues, archives and commercial organisations within the region and beyond to digitally map textile heritage assets.
Charlotte Steels the Director of Gawthorpe Textiles Collection said, “We are thrilled that our project has been selected and thank the National Lottery Heritage Fund for their support. During the pandemic, digital has provided valuable opportunities for us to try different ways of working and to connect with audiences worldwide. This project will enable us to work collaboratively across heritage, education and arts to engage communities in innovative and exciting ways; to enrich our historic collections through harnessing community voices and stories in a new, open access digital resource.”
Josie Fraser, Head of Digital Policy at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said, “Throughout the coronavirus pandemic we have all seen the essential role that digital skills have played in helping heritage organisations continue to work, communicate and connect. We are proud that our National Lottery funded Digital Skills for Heritage projects have provided the sector with practical support when it has been most needed.
“The £1 million Culture Recovery Fund boost from DCMS recognises the value of digital skills and allows us to expand the initiative. These new grants focus on what organisations have told us they need most – digital innovation, enterprise and business skills to improve and rethink how the sector operates.”
Caroline Dinenage, Minister for Digital and Culture, said, “I have been really impressed by the innovative ways that sites and projects have already pivoted during the pandemic, but now more than ever it is essential that our heritage sector has the latest digital skills to bring our history to life online. This £1 million boost from the Culture Recovery Fund will ensure that staff and volunteers have the skills they need to keep caring for the past and conserving for the future through the sector's reopening and recovery.”
