The HEROL Fiestal in Brissle
HER Forum Summer Meeting 2018, Armada House, Bristol, 4th July 2018
(Post presentation questions and comments – in italicised type following each abstract – are based on notes taken at the meeting).
View from the Chair – Chris Webster (South West Heritage Trust)
After last year’s move to the north and east from Birmingham, this year’s summer meeting headed south-west to Bristol and the well-hidden but excellent venue of Armada House. A varied programme was enjoyed by the 54 attendees, starting with Catherine McHarg and Michael Gorely on the Heritage Schools Project that Historic England are running to raise the profile of heritage in schools. This was followed by Anwen Cooper discussing the Grave Goods project that was using HER data to investigate grave goods as a phenomenon in British prehistory and how enhanced data could be returned. Finally in the morning, Alastair MacIntosh demonstrated Arcade, the implementation of the arches system for Lincoln city, and Stuart Cakebread discussed the transfer of the Greater London HER to this platform.
In the afternoon, Liz Long gave an update on the progress of heritage apprenticeships and then Stewart Bryant reported on his project to record the history of the development of HERs from the early 1960s until the advent of PPG16 in 1990. Gail Boyle then discussed the integration of museums into the development of the oasis system so that archaeological archives could be managed through the system.
The Heritage Schools Programme – Catherine McHarg and Michael Gorely (Historic England)
Historic England’s Heritage School Programme is helping to promote local heritage, and its significance, to children across the country. The aims of the Heritage Schools programme are to make sure that:
• Children develop a sense of pride in where they live
• Children understand their local heritage and how it relates to the national story
• Teachers are more confident in making effective use of local heritage resources in delivering the curriculum
• Local historic context is embedded in the school's curriculum
• Heritage providers are more connected to the needs of local schools
• Parents are engaged in their children's learning
• Communities are more deeply involved in the life of the school
To deliver these aims 8 regional managers have been employed. This was a phased approach with managers for the South West (initially just Bristol), London & South East (initially just Barking & Dagenham) and East of England (initially just Great Yarmouth) being appointed in year 1. The North East (initially just North Shields), North West (initially just Greater Manchester) and East Midlands (initially just Leicester) were added in year two. The West Midlands (initially just Telford & Wrekin) and Yorkshire (initially just rural North Yorkshire) were added in the third year. All the initial areas and subsequent wider regions of engagement have been determined by government criteria relating to socio-economic factors such as Pupil Premiums, to ensure the work is being done in areas where it is most needed.
So far the programme has given out over 250 Heritage Schools Awards to schools who have embedded local heritage into their curriculum, working directly with over 120,000 children on these projects. It has also delivered local heritage training to over 3000 teacher and trainee teachers and worked with over 400 different heritage partners; to help ensure local heritage becomes an integral part of the history work schools do.
By conducting initial baseline surveys with schools participating in the project we have been able to demonstrate its positive impacts such as; the number of teachers who ‘know a lot or quite a lot about local heritage’ rose from 19% to 90% and the number of pupils who said they ‘know a lot or quite a lot about local heritage’ rose from 4% to 79%. A full evaluation report of the project so far can be downloaded from: https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/heritage-schools/teacher-survey/.
The work of the programme was also recognised when it was nominated for, and subsequently won, the Europa Nostra Cultural Heritage award for Education Training and Awareness-Raising http://www.europeanheritageawards.eu/winners/heritage-schools-bristol/
Examples of the type of project undertaken in the South West Region were showcased at the HER Forum by Michael Gorley, the region’s Local Heritage Education Manager. More information about these and other projects can be access via our Case Studies section (https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/case-studies/ ) and on the Heritage Schools Vimeo channel (https://vimeo.com/heritageschools)
In terms of archive related work one of the key aspects has been the production of Local History packs for schools using Historic England’s unique collection of aerial photographs. These have been created for schools taking part in the programme, but are now also available to any schools via the Historic England website (https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/archive-education-resources/) along with a range of other free resources for teachers https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/education/ .
To find out more or get involved you can contact your local regional manager:
South West – Michael Gorley: Michael.Gorley@HistoricEngland.org.uk
London & South East – Helen Spencer: Helen.Spencer@HistoricEngland.org.uk
West Midlands – Martin Phillips: Martin.Phillips@HistoricEngland.org.uk
East Midlands – Ismail Dale: Ismail.Dale@HistoricEngland.org.uk
East of England – Kate Argyle: Kate.Argyle@HistoricEngland.org.uk
Yorkshire – Julie Edwards: Julie.Edwards3@HistoricEngland.org.uk
North West – Daisy Horsley: Daisy.Horsley@HistoricEngland.org.uk
North East – Viki Angel: Victoria.Angel@HistoricEngland.org.uk
Archives – Cat McHarg: Catherine.McHarg@HistoricEngland.org.uk
Question: (Heritage Information Partnerships Supervisor, Historic England) - How exactly do you select those schools you are going to work with? I know the DfE has provided the areas with disadvantages for children, but how to you choose each school?
Answer: (CM) - Yes, correct the DfE has given us the areas/places where disadvantages for children exist. In these particular areas HEs Local Heritage Education Managers like Michael get in contact with schools directly and ask if they want to get involved. It is up to the skills of the heritage brokers, the networking between schools etc. that we find schools who want to get involved.
Question: (HER Officer 1) – Can HERs help in achieving closer links between local authorities and schools?
Answer: (CM) – There seems to be a lot of willingness to build upon this first step. Practical possibilities at this stage might include linking to the project’s resource material or signposting through HERs.
Question: (Gail Boyle, Bristol Museum & Art Gallery) – How easy has it been to work with museums?
Answer: (CM) – HE seeks to work with museums, valuing them as a contact with extensive local knowledge. A good example of this can be found in Barnsley, West Yorkshire. The museum there was identified as a ‘trusted place’. They knew the right people to get in touch with and project sessions were held in the museum.
Comment: (GB) – Museums often co-ordinate a great amount of volunteer work.
Reply: (CM) - A copy of the HE Barnsley pack was sent to them to the museum to help them in ‘skilling up’ volunteers. This co-operation operated to the mutual benefit of both organisations.
Question: (GB) – How long is the project scheduled to last?
Answer: (CM) – Funding currently exists for the project until April 2020. Beyond this any extension will depend on its having made a demonstrable impact. So far the programme has been able to consistently achieve this but things inevitably remain uncertain.
HER Data and the Grave Goods Project: Enhancing the information flow – Anwen Cooper (University of Manchester)
This paper outlines work carried out on the ‘Grave Goods’ project – a research collaboration between the Universities of Reading and Manchester and the British Museum, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The project seeks to transform current understandings of mortuary practice and material culture in later prehistoric Britain. We are exploring in detail how we define ‘grave goods’, long-term patterning in the occurrence of grave goods in different regions, and also what grave goods meant to people in the past. HER data are central to the Grave Goods project. We have gathered HER data from six case study areas across Britain and are using these as a basis for building detailed records of objects found in graves. Alongside academic outputs, we are working closely with HER officers and with ExeGesIS to explore the potential for improving information flow between research projects and HERs. Using test data from Kent we have highlighted significant potential for enhancing finds records as well as source, event, and monument records. Mechanisms have been explored for providing updated information in a format and manner that is not overly cumbersome for HEROs. Another key aim is to build systematic links between finds (and monument) records currently located in HERs, the NRHE and museums. I will summarise the initial findings of this work and also raise some important consequences for future research. Overall, we hope to build better accounts of the past, and to develop the existing wealth of knowledge in HERs in a way that enhances both public and academic enjoyment of these vital resources.
Question: Gail Boyle (Bristol Museum & Art Gallery) – Museums would be interested in improving their records too. Is this a direction that could be explored?
Answer – We have recorded accession numbers in finds records where possible in the Grave Goods database and are in discussions with ExeGeSIS and individual HERs about where to put this information. However it hasn’t been possible to enter accession nos. systematically as part of the current project. A follow-on project might focus on creating a separate resource in which such links can be made and downloaded.
Comment: (GB) – HERALD does include museums data on the same platform.
Reply: This might be where the Grave Goods project could be used to furnish additional details, for example for information relating to legacy projects (not new ones)?
Question: (GB) – How far do you explore beyond the HER data?
Answer – We start with the HER data but have also used other, quite varied resources (major existing syntheses, PAS data, consulting local researchers, separate research databases, etc.. We’ve done what we can to get as much as we can (within the scope of a 3 year research project), although museums may well have still more.
Question: (HER Officer 2) – All the pilot study areas seem to be on the coast. Is there any reason for that?
Answer – The areas were all selected because they had Iron Age burials in reasonable number. The coastal element was coincidental.
Anwen Cooper then addressed a question to the floor - Have you any thoughts regarding the integration of data into HERs?
Answer: (HER Officer 1) – It would be useful to be able to quantify the time requirement for HER officers and scale this up to produce a national estimate. The NRHE to HER Project has employed a similar principle.
Comment: AC – Much thought has been given to this by exeGesIS and Kent HER. It is not easy to provide a national estimate for the time requirement for HER officers for reintegrating research data. Different HERs have different levels of information and requirements for the reintegration process. We could provide an estimate for reintegrating a basic level of information.
Comment: (HERO 1) – It’s been shown that a semi-automated process works best where there is a high percentage of entirely new records.
It’s nice to see a well thought out project (although the ‘Find my Find’ suggestion looks a bit scary at first glance!). HERs do need reference numbers in their own platforms. They aren’t (in general) presently particularly good at indexing data relating to individual finds or museum references, but this is something that might be developed. The scale of museum records is massive and these are often untapped resources.
Reply: (AC) – People shouldn’t be nervous. It’s just important that the links are made somewhere. ADS have been contacted and are familiar with the situation.
ARCHES – Bringing the Past into the Future – Stuart Cakebread (Greater London HER) and Alastair McIntosh (Lincoln City Council)
ARCHES is an open-source web geospatial system, purpose built for the recording of heritage sites by the Getty Institute in 2012. Its main features are that:
- It is net and internet compatible, open source and tender neutral.
- Local users and administrators have greater control.
- Support is provided by the ARCHES user community.
- It is currently being used by 14 organisations, both large and small, around the globe.
A demonstration of the system was given to the HER Summer Forum in York in 2015 and a workshop was staged in Liverpool last year. The Greater London HER has been taking an active interest in the system since 2015 and, on May 17th this year, with the launch of ARCADE by the City of Lincoln, it became a viable HER system.
City of Lincoln HER:
The City of Lincoln database began as an Urban Archaeological Database. Initially assembled in 1998 it was based on a flat filer system and lacked controlled vocabularies. Whilst integrating onto the ARCHES system some problems arose from the quality of the original data but, after processing, everything was placed in the right field and vocabularies were introduced.
CSD formatting was also employed for the record. In terms of geometrics, the old system had both point and polygon data. However, the main dataset was entirely point based and the polygons held elsewhere. Both sets of data have now been integrated within the same dataset. In the process of mapping across, each CSD heading has been given a corresponding point in RAI.
ARCADE places no limitations on users, but the HERO can place restrictions on access to certain fields if necessary.
Greater London HER:
ARCHES ticked a number of significant boxes for the Greater London record. It is open source and therefore cheaper to run. An office move has resulted in less space, necessitating more homeworking whilst Citrix problems restrict remote access; ARCHES can overcome this. Corporate IT support is slow and bureaucratic; ARCHES gives more control to the user.
Internal access within Historic England, London will be extended to all teams (23 HE and 13 Greater London Archaeological Advisory Service). Beyond this the GLHER features in the new London Plan and access will be made available to conservation officers in all of the London Boroughs. The new arrangements will reinforce amongst volunteers the sense that their efforts are valued. Contractors, meanwhile, can be given a link to provide restricted access and, in cases where data is being provided, this can be checked prior to full assimilation.
Question: (Assistant Inspector of Ancient Monuments, Historic England) – What is the nature of the service that you offer to contractors? Is it essentially ‘help yourself’?
Answer: (AM) – There will be on-going costs so ultimately we are going to have to start charging. The legal ramifications of this move are currently being investigated. There isn’t self-service at the moment but, dependent on a workable charging model, it could be introduced. As things stand non-commercial users can contact me and I will despatch them a url. Commercial users also contact me for searches (either as the HER officer or in my other role as City Planning Archaeologist).
Question: (Chris Webster) – If a query based on an NGR Shapefile search area were sent to you, could you deal with it?
Answer: (AM) – Yes, it would involve passing the NGR through QGIS to Geocent but this isn’t a long process.
Heritage Apprenticeships Update – Liz Long (Historic England)
Historic England convenes the Historic Environment Trailblazer, an employer led group with approximately 70 representatives from across the sector, designing new apprenticeships for historic environment roles. This is in response to the Apprenticeship Reform and Historic England’s requirements in the Culture White Paper to work with our partners to develop new heritage apprenticeships that contribute to the government’s target to support 3 million apprenticeship starts by 2020.
In order to meet the 3 million apprenticeship starts target the government has introduced an Apprenticeship Levy for all large employers in the sector (with an annual paybill of over £3 million) and a 2.3% apprenticeship starts public sector target. They have also introduced the Trailblazer process to improve the quality of apprenticeships by placing employers at the heart of the process of designing the new apprenticeships.
The Historic Environment Trailblazer is developing six apprenticeships in conservation, archaeology and heritage management in three working groups. The first apprenticeship formally signed off by the Institute for Apprenticeships, an Archaeological Technician Level 3 apprenticeship designed to train Archaeological Fieldwork Officers, is ready for delivery and the first cohort is likely to start this Autumn. Similarly the first cohort on the Cultural Heritage Conservation Technician Level 4 apprenticeship is likely to start this year. The remaining heritage apprenticeships are likely to be approved and ready for delivery next year, with the first group of apprentices on the higher level apprenticeships starting in September 2019.
A number of professional bodies including CIfA, ICON, IHBC, ALGAO, RTPI, RICS and CIOB are involved in developing the new apprenticeships, as well as employers and training providers, to ensure they meet professional standards and that the apprentices are fully competent to work in the relevant roles at the end of their apprenticeship.
The heritage apprenticeships will offer an important new route into a range of professions and help to improve social mobility and diversity in the sector, help to address shortages and specialist skills and knowledge-gaps in the sector, and help support career progression for existing staff enabling them to up or side skill through an apprenticeship.
For more information on heritage apprenticeships visit the Historic England website - https://historicengland.org.uk/services-skills/training-skills/work-based-training/heritage-apprenticeships/.
Download a Heritage Apprenticeships leaflet at https://content.historicengland.org.uk/content/docs/education/heritage-apprenticeships-leaflet.pdf
Michael McBratney, the new Heritage Apprenticeships Strategy and Delivery Manager at Historic England will be in post from 10th September Email Michael.mcbratney@historicengland.org.uk
Question: (HER Officer 3) – How long does an apprenticeship last?
Answer – Generally, lower level apprenticeships will last between 2 and 3 years. Higher level lasts longer.
Question: (HER Officer 3) – Is the £9000 a flat sum?
Answer – No, the figure is a negotiable sum up to £9000. More is available for higher level apprenticeships (up to £27000 paid over 3-4 years).
Question: (HER officer 4) – Is the understanding that each apprenticeship will result in a job at its conclusion?
Answer – Ideally yes, but this isn’t a binding requirement. It will be down to the individual organisation, though each apprenticeship should be based on a demonstrable business requirement. At the very least individuals should emerge from the scheme able to compete in the jobs market for roles within the sector. The approach used by Historic England involves employability training as part of the process.
Question: (HER Officer 5) – How are the apprentices assessed?
Answer – Methods will differ according to the organisation involved. At Level 4 there will be evaluation against specific projects and reports aligning with the practices of specific professional bodies.
Question: (HER Officer 4) – Could you explain what a Level 4 apprenticeship equates to?
Answer – Level 4 would equate to a foundation degree. Correlations overall are based on OffQual levels.
Question: (HER Officer 3) – How are the apprentices’ employment rights protected?
Answer – Protections do exist throughout the duration of an apprenticeship, although there are avenues through which fair dismissal can be pursued. The issue should be something that Human Resources teams have responsibility for.
Question: Chris Webster – What happens if a host organisation can’t provide an adequate grounding in enough skills?
Answer – This is something which obviously has to be given advance thought. There is an option for a shared apprenticeships model being developed by archaeological units. If you feel that you might have difficulties in this respect the college involved should be able to help.
HER Histories – Stewart Bryant (University of Oxford School of Archaeology)
The idea behind the HER Histories Project emerged from the EngLaid initiative when it was realised that surprisingly little had been set down regarding the advent and early development of English SMRs (later HERs).
The methodology employed has been developed in collaboration with Anwen Cooper (formerly one of the EngLaid co-ordinators) and uses a ‘life histories’ approach based, in large part, on interviews with key personalities involved in the process between 1964 and 1989. Two case studies were instigated to cover: how SMRs began and how they then spread and developed, one involving the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire area and a second in the North West (Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside).
Interviews in the former locality were held with the following individuals:
Don Benson – County Archaeologist for Oxfordshire between 1964 and 1975.
Jo Jeffries – Ministry of Works and English Heritage 1969-1985.
David Baker – County Archaeologist for Bedfordshire between 1972 and 1999.
Stephen Coleman – SMR and HER Officer for Bedfordshire (later Central Bedfordshire) from 1979.
Mike Farley – County Archaeologist for Buckinghamshire from 1972.
Those interviewed in the North West, meanwhile were:
Adrian Olivier – Field Officer, Lancaster University 1976-1979.
John Walker – Deputy Director/Director of Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit from 1980 to c1988.
Gill Chitty – Field Survey Archaeologist, Merseyside 1978-1983.
Susan Nicholson – Archaeological Survey of Merseyside and Merseyside SMR 1979-1995.
The picture that emerged from their stories seems to echo the perception of the mid to late 1960s as a time of accelerated cultural change where ‘all things seemed possible’. After a ‘big bang’ in Oxfordshire between 1964 and 67 these records developed technically through optical co-incidence cards and pioneering work with photocopiers to embrace the new computing technologies in the 1970s. Whilst the Oxfordshire system wasn’t actively publicised the benefits of the system quickly became apparent to others in the field and similar records began to appear within other local authorities.
In the north meanwhile, the creative climate was energised by the juxta-positioning of new metropolitan authorities with forward thinking archaeologists attached to local universities. The concept of the SMR was further evolved into new geographical environments like uplands and wetlands. Those involved brought with them and developed an expanded range of technical skills and were resourceful in exploiting initiatives like the Manpower Services Scheme of the early 1980s to extend the workforce and resources available to heritage recording.
As well as filling a gap in the collective knowledge of the sector it was also intended that HER Histories should contribute to the role of advocacy for HERs. The details that emerge illustrate the early stages of what can be seen as one of the most notable successes in the utilisation and development of conservation studies within the local authority framework. The concept of the HER now comprehensively underpins the management of the historic environment within the planning process. Whilst possibly a debateable point, it can be plausibly argued that, in terms of the range and quality of the information that they hold, these are records unparalleled within their sphere.
Working Together Towards an Integrated Approach: HERs, HERALD and Museums – Gail Boyle (Bristol Museum & Art Gallery)
The background to this initiative can be found in a number of studies undertaken by the Society for Museum Archaeology (SMA) in collaboration with a range of partner organisations from 2015 onwards. These revealed a picture which showed a collection system struggling to accommodate archaeological archives and losing qualified expertise. SMA have also been involved at an advisory board level with the delivery of the Heritage Information Access Strategy, one work package of which comprises the revision of OASIS.
SMA members were consulted as part of the HERALD user studies workshop undertaken in 2015. The envisaged aims of the initiative were to improve communications through the development of OASIS, bringing in museums as one of a number of new user communities. Workflows will be improved and duplication of effort reduced.
Feedback from the workshop has been used to develop both a new archive section for the OASIS form and a museum log-in for the site. This will be a welcome and significant step forward for museums since they will now become part of an integrated online management process. Employing the new components, museum users will be able to see all projects that have happened within their area through a dedicated search function. The new elements will enable documentation to be shared and message threads between museums and others to be recorded. It will also provide a window on museum archives collection for contractors and fieldworkers. Those working in an unfamiliar area will be able to find information about museums within that locality in advance, give prior notice of their activities and begin an early as well as on ongoing dialogue on the deposition of archive.
Further information on the project is available at:
• http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/blog/oasis/
• @oasis_data
• herald@ads.ac.uk
Comment: (Assistant Inspector of Ancient Monuments, Historic England) – There will be another phase of testing for OASIS next spring. This will lead on to a beta release of the new system in spring 2020. There will be training provision to support the new arrangements and a survey will be undertaken later this summer to determine requirements.