We are excited to be hosting oral historians from around the UK for the annual Oral History Society (OHS) regional networkers’ gathering next weekend. The event will begin on Friday 26 October with a special seminar from Dr Rob Perks, director of National Life Stories at the British Library. Saturday’s program focusses on the challenges and opportunities of partnership working and the afternoon will be opened to non-members.
Rob Perks is a leading figure in UK oral history, and is responsible for the largest oral history archive in Britain. Practitioners and archivists alike have had to grapple with the impact of the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on our practice. In his public seminar, Rob will sharing his understanding of how this affects recording, archiving and partnership working for oral historians.
Friday 26 October, 3.30pm in the Percy Building G13, Newcastle University. (Building 23 on the campus map)
On Saturday morning, OHS regional networkers will learn about the Oral History Unit & Collective’s current project, Foodbank Histories, from OHUC research associate Alison Atkinson-Phillips, PhD researcher Jack Hepworth and Silvie Fisch of Northern Cultural Projects (NCP). Both NCP and the Newcastle West End Foodbank are our partners in this work.
Saturday afternoon is open to all our oral history colleagues and anyone interested in finding out more about partnership working. During the afternoon session, participants will have the opportunity to hear about two intriguing oral history projects. (Download flyer)
Saturday 27 October, 1.00pm to 4.00pm in the Armstrong Building, Newcastle University (Building 22 on the campus map)
Freelance oral historian Padmini Broomfield will share experiences from the Los Niños: child exiles of the Spanish Civil War project. Led by the University of Southampton with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the project developed collaborations with several organisations.
Kath Smith and Yvonne Hall of Remembering the Past, Resourcing the Future will reflect on their experiences of working on the ESRC-funded ‘Imagine North East’ project, a multi-partner collaboration led by the University of Durham. The project focused on ‘civic participation’ – how to get people involved and influence life in their communities.
The two presentations will be followed by small group discussions about the challenges and opportunities of partnership working.