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The proposed DCMS White Paper on 'Our Culture': A response by

RESCUE The British Archaeological Trust

Our third theme is about people and how they engage with culture. How do we ensure that

everyone can learn about and through culture, and get the right encouragement and opportunities

to experience and participate in cultural activities throughout their lives.

RESCUE -The British Archaeological Trust (www.rescue-archaeology.org.uk)

welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the formulation of the forthcoming White Paper

on 'Our Culture'. We offer the following thoughts on the theme of 'People and their

engagement with culture'.

Archaeology has an excellent record in engaging with the public. A variety of paths

offer diverse opportunities to engage with the historic environment. These include adult

education classes, U3A groups, local archaeological and heritage societies, lottery fundedexcavation and survey projects and opportunities to volunteer in museums and heritage

centres. The diversity of opportunities means that archaeology is open to a wide range of

people with different aptitudes, skills and interests. Participation is not limited to active

and able-bodied people (unlike, for example, sport which attracts vastly higher levels of

funding and investment), as many museums are now running projects involving groups

such as Alzheimer's sufferers, people with autism and mental health issues, the elderly

and the infirm while Project Nightingale has been successful in engaging injured ex-

service personnel in archaeological fieldwork. Local societies offer a range of activitiesfrom participation in fieldwork to documentary and archival research. There are few

professional archaeologists currently working in Britain who do not spend at least part of

their time interacting directly with the public whether this be through work with schools

and colleges, with community groups or through projects funded by the Heritage Lottery

Fund.

Archaeology involves a unique combination of activities that give it a broad appeal

that goes beyond many other areas of cultural endeavour. Excavation and post-excavation

work offer a 'hands-on' engagement with the past through the medium of the site and

material culture. Excavation and field survey, often physically demanding activities, offer

not only intellectual excitement but also positive health benefits for all participants. The

cleaning and documenting of finds, research into their character and their social and

economic roles in the past and documentary research encourages the participation of those

for whom more sedentary activities are appropriate while the production of interpretative

texts, images and similar material not only engages those responsible for producing digital

and printed 'content' but also helps to disseminate the results amongst the wider public.

RESCUE can, if required, supply more details of numerous highly successful

projects which bring archaeologists and the public together in ways that contribute toformal education (school age and beyond), to the enjoyment of existing sites and

monuments (such as Conisbrough Castle in South Yorkshire and Old Woking Palace in

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Surrey), the investigation of the past of specific communities (Monk Fryston (North

Yorkshire), Hope and Castleton (Derbyshire), Athersley (South Yorkshire) and so on.

Key to the continuation and expansion of the many diverse schemes currently in

operation is a robust and effective professional infrastructure based upon Historic

Environment Records, currently under severe threat from local and national government

spending cuts. HER staff provide essential advice and support for archaeological and

heritage-related projects and are often the link between commercial archaeology units

(which provide much of the practical expertise) and the public. Cuts to HER staff and

savage cuts to budgets place this vital role in jeopardy. An increasing number of HLF

funded and other voluntary projects lack professional input because HERs have either

been closed by local authorities or lack the human resources to engage effectively with

local groups on a day-to-day basis.

All excavation and survey projects generate archives that represent the surviving

traces of the archaeology after investigation. The lack of effective government support forlocal and regional museums means that these institutions no longer have the capacity to

curate and store these unique and irreplaceable archives for the benefit of future

generations. In many cases the same museums lack sufficient or suitably trained and

experienced staff to engage with the public and to offer the kind of support that is often

needed in areas such as conservation. The inevitable result is that outcomes are all too

often less than they should be and the value of the projects is significantly diminished as a

result.

RESCUE looks to government (both local and national) to ensure that the essential

infrastructure that supports the work of professionals with amateurs and volunteers is

maintained and (given the scale and depth of the cuts to heritage services over the last

twenty years), enhanced and upgraded to ensure that the numerous and diverse benefits

of public participation in archaeology are fully realised.