Children from Chippenham and the surrounding area, and even some from
as far away as Swindon and Weston-super-Mare, recently experienced a
tremendously successful series of canal based activities in Chippenham
Museum & Heritage Centre.
The Half Term activities were organised by the museum and the Wilts
& Berks Canal Trust, and were funded by a Heritage Lottery Fund
Sharing Heritage grant.
Activities such as making model narrow boats, tying knotted key rings,
painting canalware and taking part in a mini archaeological dig, were
all planned to help children have fun, while learning more about their
local heritage, especially the role of Wilts & Berks Canal in
Chippenham.
On Thursday, ‘Alice Ashe’, a resident of Chippenham, visited the museum
and enthralled children with her opinions on the canal people – she was
not very complimentary about their behaviour, and had even had to move
away from the Market Place because of the unsavoury nature of the canal
wharf!
The three days proved incredibly popular, with over 120 children and 75
adults attending the event, organised to commemorate 100 years since
the abandonment of the canal.
Melissa Barnett is the curator of Chippenham Museum & Heritage Centre.
She said: “This is such a wonderful project which is introducing
children to an important but largely forgotten part of their heritage.
There are so many exciting stories that can be told about life on the
canal and traditional skills that can be passed on. I was so pleased to
see the museum buzzing with happy children proudly showing off their
crafts and look forward to the family events in June where there will
be even more activities.”
Val Melville is a volunteer with the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust.
She said: “We were delighted with the tremendous response to the
Activity Days! The children were so excited by the activities and
really enjoyed finding out more about the canal; everyone went away
very enthusiastic about what they had made and learnt.
“It was a pleasure to work with the museum for this event, and it was
brilliant to be able to use their excellent education facilities to
host the workshops.
“We are now looking forward to our Heritage Open Days on 20th &
21st of June, when local schools and the community are invited to visit
Pewsham Locks to experience storytellers in period costumes,
traditional music, craft demonstrations and workshops.”
Nerys Watts, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund South West said:
“Sharing Heritage is a wonderful opportunity for communities to delve
into their local heritage and we are delighted to be able to offer this
grant so that the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust and Chippenham Museum
can embark on a real journey of discovery.
“Heritage means such different things to different people and HLF’s
funding offers a wealth of opportunities for groups to explore and
celebrate what’s important to them in their local area.”
For further information on the Canal Trust activities, email Kath Hatton at kath.hatton@wbct.org.uk
The aim of the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust is to restore the former
waterway from the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham to the Thames
& Severn Canal near Cricklade and the River Thames near Abingdon,
connecting Chippenham, Calne, Royal Wootton Bassett and Swindon.
Sharing Heritage
Sharing Heritage is for any not-for-profit group wanting to explore
their community’s heritage. With a commitment from HLF of £3m each
year, Sharing Heritage grants between £3,000 and £10,000 are now
available to groups who want to discover their local heritage. Projects
can cover a wide spectrum of subject matter from exploring local
archaeology and a community’s cultures and traditions to identifying
and recording local wildlife and protecting the surrounding environment
to managing and training volunteers, and holding festivals and events
to commemorate the past.
Using money raised through the National Lottery, the Heritage Lottery
Fund (HLF) aims to make a lasting difference for heritage, people and
communities across the UK and help build a resilient heritage economy.
From museums, parks and historic places to archaeology, natural
environment and cultural traditions, we invest in every part of our
diverse heritage. HLF has supported almost 35,000 projects with £5.5bn
across the UK. www.hlf.org.uk.
For more information about the local Branch of the Trust you can visit their Web site www.melkshamwaterway.org.uk
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