Call out for Heritage Project Worker
Histories at Hobmoor, Mercurial Arts
A Heritage Lottery Funded Project
Deadline for expressions of interest: 18 May 2017 5PM
Histories at Hobmooor
Mercurial Arts has received funding from The Heritage Lottery to deliver Histories at Hobmoor. Histories at Hobmoor will enable adults and children in Yardley, an area of low engagement in the arts in Birmingham, to learn about their heritage and share their stories of moving to, and living in this area.
Children from Oasis Academy Hobmoor will learn to interview and record memories and oral histories of their family members, local councillors, teachers and members of the public fostering a love of heritage and deeper community connections. The project will take place over a series of after-school sessions; at the local library for the public; and activities enabling Hobmoor Community Centre to open in the holidays for the first time. We will invite local partner organisations to present information (e.g. old maps & objects) to inspire participants.
The participants will create their own poetic responses to the oral histories they collect, enabling a deeper emotional understanding of their identity and the journeys people have taken. We will publish the collected Oral Histories, family memories and creative responses via an Augmented Reality (AR) App –
a walking tour of the area sharing heritage, 3D scanned objects & photographs linked to location; e-book and on a new website, where people can comment and add their own stories.
Who are we?
Mercurial Arts Charity, and it sister trading company Mercurial Dance is a small arts organisation with substantial experience producing and delivering arts projects for young people. With a specialism in Dance and Digital art, our work has grown from performance project to developing & delivering whole school arts curricula. We have an extremely good reputation among the organizations we work with, and have a long standing relationship with Hobmoor Primary School, based in Yardley, Birmingham.
The Role
The role of the Heritage Project Worker will be an integral part of the project to inspire and encourage the local community to engage with the project. They will assist the project in
• Working with the project director on Histories at Hobmoor
• Helping to develop and form an adult oral history group
• Leading 10 weekly adult heritage sessions for this group (approx 2 hours per week)
• Supporting and developing the skills of volunteers in this group as Oral History Collectors
• Contribute to the young peoples heritage sessions.
• Act as a bridge between artists, project managers, and the community.
• Identify and support the collection, and administrative preparation for submission, of ten formal oral histories for archives.
Time frame
18 May 2017 5PM Deadline for expressions of interest
26 May 2017 Informal Interview and appointment
Monday 12 June Evaluation framework to be complete
w/c 12 June Launch Event and project starts
w/c 19 June 2017 Taster Sessions at Oasis Academy Hobmoor to form youth groups
July – October 2017 Regular Adult Groups sessions
24 -28 July Children’s holiday intensive
28 October Project Celebration tbc
Mid Dec Finish of Project
Who we are looking for
We would like an enthusiastic person with great communication skills, that the people of Yardley can build a trusting relationship with. You will have an interest in the local history of Yardley and ideally be someone who knows the local area and people well, and has build good relationships within the community. Experience of heritage project work is essential, and experience of collecting oral history is desirable, however oral history training will form part of this project.
For a large population of the school, children and their families, English isn’t their first language, therefore being able to speak another language (preferably Urdu) would be an advantage.
The Heritage Project Worker will require an up to date DBS check, however we can provide this check if you don’t have one already.
Fee
£4400 inclusive of VAT (if applicable) and expenses offered on a self-employed/freelance basis.
We anticipate this to be a minimum of 20 days @ £220 per day inc VAT
How to apply
If you would like a chat to us before you apply then please feel free to call 07884 068108. To apply please send us your contact details along with an expression of interest (no more that 1 side of A4) explaining why you would be suitable to undertake the Heritage Project Worker for the project with Mercurial Arts. Contact us here for how to submit.
Deadline for applications: 18 May 2017 5PM
