Our Projects
A group of children in a churchyard – taking part in the South Humber Bank Wildlife and People project

Case Study - The Sugar Tours Project 

Programme: Your Heritage 
Applicant: African and Caribbean Voices  
Grant awarded: £41,000 
Project length: 12 months 

The Sugar Tours - printable (MS Word, 870KB) 

Summary

This project focused on exploring the heritage of ten sites across the UK which have links to the Transatlantic Slave Trade, in particular the sugar industry. Around 500 people took part in tours to heritage sites including Westminster Abbey, Chatham Historic Docks, the Maritime Museum and the Tate and Lyle factory. Participants then reflected on their learning by imputing their thoughts onto an interactive website.

A film was made about the project’s progress and the Museum in Docklands hosted an event where the ‘Chain of Remembrance’, an artwork created by project participants, was unveiled in February 2008.


The aims of the project

The project had three aims:

  • To explore the socio-economic consequences of the sugar industry in the 18th and 19th centuries
  • To involve families from BAME (Black Asian Minority Ethnic) backgrounds in the tours and show their perspective through the creation of learning resources
  • Produce a film, exhibition and a launch event to highlight the history of the sugar trade

 


Benefits for heritage

  • The Museum in Docklands was able to record the views of a range of people from BAME backgrounds about their perspective of the heritage of the sugar trade industry
  • The project video was distributed to a range of London community groups so they too could understand the heritage and impact made by the sugar industry 200 years ago
  • Learning resources produced by the project have been archived at the Museum in Docklands and Museum of London
  • 1000 additional printed copies of the interactive map have been distributed across London.

Benefits for people

  • 500 people from BAME backgrounds took part in tours to ten sites across the UK. Travel costs and expenses were funded by HLF to ensure everyone could take part in the activities
  • Five new volunteers learnt new skills whilst assisting project staff on the tours and at  outreach workshops that followed the visits
  • The Museum in Docklands was able to support some historical research and host the exhibition and many people visited this museum for the first time as a direct result of the project.

Lessons learnt

  • Making strong links with the Museum of London and Museum in Dockland’s education team was important to ensure the smooth running of the project
  • Working with schools was sometimes challenging because they had already planned their term programmes
  • Be adaptable about how much time children and families can commit to a project.

Long term benefits

  • People from excluded groups were able to contribute to the archives of a large museum and felt their voice had been heard and recorded
  • The project was part of the wider commemoration of the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade on Transatlantic Ships and raised the profile of this important milestone in UK and international history.

The budget

Main Project Costs £ Funding £
 Activities (staff, travel, printing learning materials, overheads)  46,100  Cash from organisation  4,169
 Capital  0  Non-cash contributions  900
 Total costs   46,100   HLF grant (89%)  41,000 


A page from the archive collection  

A page from the archive collection  

Sector

Cultures and Memories 

Activity

Learning