Jarrow Hall Celebrates National Lottery Heritage Fund Award
We have some exciting news!
Jarrow Hall Celebrates National Lottery Heritage Fund Award
Groundwork South and North Tyneside is awarded a £249,979 grant by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to restore the reconstructed Anglo-Saxon “Village” at Jarrow Hall Museum, delivering Skills from the Past for the Future.
Thanks to National Lottery players, the project aims to work with people from the local community alongside heritage specialists to restore three reconstructed Anglo-Saxon dwellings, supporting volunteers to learn new heritage skills and bringing the village to life for visitors.
The project aims to carry out essential restoration of the timber framed dwellings, creating volunteering roles and skills workshops in practical heritage skills e.g. thatching, carpentry, textiles and bee keeping. The project will also see the installation of an accessible composting toilet, improvements to the Jarrow Hall website with 3D scans of the dwellings and recruitment of a Culture Engagement Apprentice to support the team.
Jarrow Hall, Anglo-Saxon Farm, Village and Bede Museum is a unique 11 acre site, dedicated to the life and legacy of Bede and the Golden Age of Northumbria. Originally built in 1995 following the ground-breaking archaeological dig which took place at the nearby St Paul’s Church, the museum includes an extensive open-air Anglo-Saxon demonstration farm and authentically reconstructed Anglo-Saxon dwellings, based on structures excavated in Northumbria, giving visitors an impression of the world Bede would have known during his childhood.
The village now built nearly thirty years ago is in desperate need of repair, and the specialist support and training will keep threatened heritage skills alive, passing knowledge to younger generations and bringing history to life for 30,000 annual visitors.
Commenting on the award, Andrew Watts Chief Executive of Groundwork said: “We’re delighted that we’ve received this support thanks to National Lottery players. This project marks the next step in our 15 year masterplan and delivers on our access for all ambition, as we create training and volunteering opportunities for young and old alike and bring Anglo-Saxon Northumbria to life – enriching lives through culture and heritage”
Councillor Joan Atkinson, Deputy Leader of South Tyneside Council with responsibility for Culture, Leisure and the Visitor Economy, said: “This is fantastic news for Groundwork, for the Jarrow Hall site and for the wider Borough.
“This funding support will not only help to restore and preserve our history and heritage assets for visitors to enjoy in the future but give people the chance to access specialist training and develop traditional building and craft skills that have continued to survive for hundreds of years.”
David Renwick, Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, this project will not only give people the opportunity to not only learn about heritage, but to become truly involved in it by trying their hand at some really impressive heritage skills, such as thatching. We know that giving people a chance to have a closer understanding and relationship to their heritage reaps many benefits, and we are really proud to be supporting Groundwork to deliver the ‘Skills from the Past for the Future’ project.”
