Supplementary memorandum submitted by
The Civic Trust
1. THE CIVIC
TRUST
Established in 1957, the Civic Trust (CT) is
the leading UK charity dedicated to bringing vitality, sustainability
and high quality design to the built environment, to promoting
thriving towns and villages and developing dynamic partnerships
between communities, government and business to deliver regeneration
and local improvement. It is also the umbrella body for 850 Civic
Societies across the country, representing over 250,000 individuals
committed to improving and caring for places where people live
and work.
2. HERITAGE OPEN
DAYS, ENGLAND'S
LARGEST VOLUNTARY
CULTURAL EVENT
2.1 Since 1994, the Civic Trust has been
running Heritage Open Days which forms part of the European Heritage
Days. Organised by some 26,000 volunteers for local people, Heritage
Open Days (HODs) is England's biggest and most popular voluntary
cultural event, attracting over 800,000 people every year. The
Civic Trust gives central co-ordination and a national voice to
the event, which is made possible by funding and support from
English Heritage.
2.2 HODs raises awareness and appreciation
of the built environment and stimulates curiosity and learning
in people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds by offering free
access to a wide range of properties and activities. By engaging
volunteers from all walks of life, the programme empowers local
communities and fosters civic pride. Visitor feedback forms and
organiser questionnaires returned after the event provide vivid
proof that taking part in HODs does make a difference.
2.3 The study "Developing New Audiences
for the Heritage" (HLF, 2001) identified the following groups
as traditionally missing audiences (as visitors & volunteers)
in the cultural heritage sector: Young people under 30, black
or minority ethnic groups, C2DE socio-economic groups, people
without access to transport facilities and disabled people. Certain
user perceptions, a lack of information and awareness, poor physical
access to and at the resource, and admission costs were identified
as barriers to participation.
2.4 HODs contributes to breaking down these
social, economic and physical barriers to heritage by providing
access to otherwise private or admission-charging properties in
all major cities and towns, many villages and neighbourhoods in
England completely free of charge. All buildings (many of which
outside the traditional heritage range) are registered by local
people for their interest and relevance to the local community.
Working in partnership with English Heritage's Outreach team and
drawing on the support of a HLF-funded education programme, HODs
effectively widens access to cultural activities.
2.5 HODs contributed to achieving the Government's
PSA 2 target of attracting 100,000 new visitors to the historic
environment by 2005-06. A MORI survey conducted at a range of
venues over the four-day event in 2004, showed that around 36,000
HODs visitors belonged to the targeted priority groups (ie 20+
year old, ethnic minority and/or C2DE). The 2005 visitor study
showed that 26% of HODs visitors belonged to C2DE socio-economic
group and 10% were "new heritage visitors", ie first-time
visitors coming from social priority groups. The Civic Trust is
committed to contributing to the Government's future cultural
participation targets.
2.6 Since 2002, the number of events participating
in Heritage Open Days has risen by 50% and the number of local
organisers by 38. The HODs programme comprises a breathtaking
variety of buildings and activities that celebrate local distinctiveness
and cultural diversity. Recognising that HODs is an excellent
way for people of different backgrounds to explore the architecture,
traditions and stories that make up their cultural identity, the
EH Outreach team has been helping to engage more socially and
ethnically diverse community groups over the last two years. Last
year's event saw 10 synagogues, nine mosques plus a Muslim burial
ground, four Sikh temples, three Buddhist temples, three Hindu
temples, two multi-faith trails, two multi-faith centres and a
multi-cultural festival.
2.7 Interpretation of the participating
buildings and places and making this as accessible as possible
both intellectually and physically are key to HODs. Through regular
guidance in newsletters, a high-quality Organiser's Handbook and
a series of workshops, local participants learn how to appeal
to and reach diverse audiences and how to enhance the overall
visitor and learning experience.
2.8 In conclusion, the overwhelmingly positive
feedback and the ever-growing popularity of HODs with both visitors
and volunteers prove that our architectural and cultural heritage
does matter to people of all ages and backgrounds and that it
is recognised as an important asset in the community. HODs as
a predominantly volunteer-led initiative not only promotes the
accessibility and appreciation of heritage, it also furthers social
cohesion and civic pride within communities and neighbourhoods.
19 January 2006
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