IHBC Yearbook 2016

36 Y E A R B O O K 2 0 1 6 Another BPT which is consciously courting the younger audience is The Arkwright Society at Cromford Mills in Matlock, Derbyshire. Established as a trust in the early 1980s, it now runs the mill as a major visitor attraction. In 2014 the society decided to engage with the under-fives in a bid to develop lifelong relationships with visitors to the site. In what some might consider a complete change of tactics for a BPT, the society created a fluffy mascot called ‘Arkwright the Duck’ which is available to buy on-site and online but, more importantly, has his own Facebook and Twitter feeds. Thousands of the ducks have since been sold providing much needed income. Young (and old) owners are also taking their ducks with them on holiday and sending back photographs of Arkwright via the internet as part of the ‘Arkwright’s Adventures’ concept. As a result, the society has more than doubled its followers online and has developed a duck-themed merchandising range. The society is also publishing a range of ‘Arkwright’s Adventures’ books and launching a children’s membership scheme. The duck is the trust’s single most successful sales item and forms a key component of its web-based community engagement strategy. In Scotland, Glasgow Building Preservation Trust (GBPT) is a shining example of how a BPT can work successfully with new partners to deliver community benefits while harnessing support for its activities. Through a partnership with Glasgow City Council and Glasgow Life, the BPT restored Kelvingrove Bandstand and Amphitheatre (Glasgow’s last original bandstand). The bandstand, which had suffered years of vandalism, was reopened in time for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and is now one of the city’s prime venues. GBPT has gone on to deliver a song-writing and performance project called ‘Sing Me a New Song’ in partnership with Glasgow Life and Live Music Now. BBC Radio Scotland’s Young Traditional Musicians for 2014 and 2015 led a local community choir, Voicebeat, over four weeks of song-writing workshops to develop a new suite of songs. The songs draw their inspiration and themes from the heritage of the bandstand and the project culminated in a major public performance. As a result of this and other partnership projects, GBPT is increasingly being approached by communities seeking its help to restore their precious places. This is also true for Village Alive, a BPT working in rural Wales. Unlike other BPTs which take on the ownership of buildings in order to preserve them, Village Alive helps existing owners of historic buildings to retain, restore and maintain their buildings. The trust only helps when asked to and when the owner is willing to sign up to making a contribution to the costs of repair and to pay for ongoing maintenance. Owners also agree to public access for ten years. Once repairs are completed, Village Alive co-ordinates a varied programme of events in the buildings. These have included a pear and perry festival in one of the barns, education days and workshops, trails between the buildings (working with local accommodation providers to encourage people to stay in the area), teaching traditional crafts and maypole dancing to local school children. The trust also runs conservation awards to raise the profile of good conservation practice and events to enable private owners to understand, interpret and enhance their listed buildings. Every activity is designed to promote good partnerships, stimulate the local economy and promote heritage. All the owners of these conserved buildings become members of the trust so they are part of the trust’s broader aims. What’s more, after ten years, when they could pull out of the scheme, owners are now choosing to continue to keep their buildings open as they have seen the benefits. Another very active and community-engaged BPT is the Heritage Trust of Lincolnshire (HTL), which has led the field with its Lincolnshire Heritage at Risk project. The largest of its kind when it started in 2010, the project covers a geographical area of 5,949 square kilometres, encompassing 538 parishes and 9,128 heritage assets. The ever-dynamic HTL recruited A guided tour party visits the mill basin at Cromford Mills in Matlock, Derbyshire, which is home to The Arkwright Society (Photo: Cromford Mills)

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