Somerstown Stories project has been signed off by the Heritage Lottery Fund. This marks the end of the grant funding from HLF…but not the end of the project. On-going interest from the local community has sparked three follow-on workshops at Priory School, Portsmouth Foyer and Somerstown Adventure Playground.
Each event has been tailored to meet the needs of the individual venue and are noticeably different in feel and approach. For the Adventure Playground, for example, we’re considering how a derelict piece of nearby land could possibly be transformed into a wildlife garden, and to help the children and their families understand what this could look like we’re borrowing from Helen Oxenbury’s ‘We’re Going on a Bear Hunt’ story, whilst we explore the nature reserve at Admiral Lord Nelson School in the north of the city.
At Priory School, students will be exploring archive maps and photos and then going on a walk round the area, applying their newly acquired knowledge to real locations around the school. This will then be linked to literacy based work, using Somerstown Stories as inspiration.
This work has been funded by the Community Development Foundation’s Community First funding stream, and we’re delighted to have the opportunity to continue to share the stories of Somerstown!
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Listen out for Sharon’s interview with Terry Powell on Express FM which is being recorded on April 24th and should be aired shortly afterwards, for more info on these new projects!
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