Case Study - Speaking for ourselves

Programme: Heritage Grants
Applicant: Scope
Grant awarded: £185,000
Project length: 2 Years

Speaking for Ourselves - printable (MS Word, 347KB)

Summary

Many communities within the UK have recorded their own histories for the public record, but a notable absence was people with cerebral palsy. With this project, Scope aimed to rectify this imbalance by giving disabled people the opportunity to describe their lives and tell their own stories.

The material collected through the project provides primary evidence of how society's perception of disability changed during the 20th century, as well as illustrating those aspects of life where disabled people still face barriers to equality. Disabled volunteers, including some young people, were trained in oral history techniques and successfully interviewed older people with cerebral palsy.

The project generated audio and video recordings, which have been accepted into the National Sound Archive, as well as a teaching pack for schools and a website.

The aims of the project

To train 16 disabled volunteers in oral history techniques
To capture the life histories of people aged over 50 who have cerebral palsy by recording 32 interviews and videoing an additional eight
To disseminate the results of the project through a teaching pack for schools and colleges and a dedicated website

Benefits for heritage

A record of the lives of people with cerebral palsy from the mid 20th century has been captured for the first time and conserved for the future. By including the history of disabled people as told and recorded by disabled people, the project has filled an important gap in the social history of the UK
40 records, comprising over 230 hours of oral history, have been deposited and made accessible in The British Library National Sound Archive

Benefits for people

Disabled volunteers were trained in new skills
Disabled people fully participated in all aspects of the project - as project manager, volunteer interviewers and interviewees
A volunteer coordinator said: “Having cerebral palsy myself, I feel tremendously motivated and inspired by such a socially and historically important project. It is vital to be able to explain ‘what it’s like’, and I hope others will gain inspiration and awareness hearing [the life histories.]”
Children and young people learned about disability, prejudice, discrimination and the contribution that disabled people make to society as a result of the teaching resources produced as part of the project

Lessons learnt

Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) clearances were necessary for staff and volunteers working with the young people taking part in the project. These checks can take months to process and this can affect the timetable of your project if you don’t factor it in
Supporting disabled volunteers and giving them the opportunity to participate in heritage projects costs less than many people think
Email marketing to schools worked well and there has been a good response to the teaching materials

Long term benefits

An enduring archive has been created within the mainstream public record
The interviews and learning resources continue to be used by schools and the media beyond the official end of the project

The budget

Main Project Costs	£	Funding	£
Equipments / materials	23,850	Other grants / cash	14,003
Staff and fees	57,600	Non-cash contributions	11,250
Training	800	HLF grant (88%)	185,000
Transcription services	18,000
Enabing support for disabled people	7,000
Video production	23,000
		Total costs	210,253

Disabled volunteers at an oral history session

Sector

Cultures and Memories

Activity

Participation