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Home » Heptonstall’s history – Connecting with the Cragg Vale Coiners

Heptonstall’s history – Connecting with the Cragg Vale Coiners

Exciting Schools Offering Moves Forward with Fundraising Campaign launched

With the help of one of our trustees, Sam Gould, who has applied her professional expertise as an educator to develop plans for primary school children to learn about The Cragg Vale Coiners, as part of Heptonstall Museum’s experiences.

The project will offer a cultural experience for children about a period of history where there are few primary resources that is not part of the National Curriculum.

School teacher’s have the opportunity to build their children’s experience, choosing from the variety they of components to suit their time and interests.

Options include morning workshops around interactive storytelling or coin-making.

Workshops will be delivered in Heptonstall Museum, a grade II heritage building, and provides the perfect environment for pupils to ‘step back in time’ and learn about daily life in the late 18th century through the story of the Cragg Vale Coiners and their lives, families, social networks and economic struggles.

For the afternoon, options are either with a published poet, who will run a poetry workshop with the children. Or taking a self-guided tour of the village, visiting other buildings and features of significance such as St Thomas Church, The Cloth Hall, and Weavers Square.

With bespoke resources, available online will include a short film written and produced by a local author, photographs, contemporary documents, video and audio files, will enable teachers to continue teaching and learning in their schools if they wish, and will provide a vehicle for children to explore the broader socio-economic themes of the period in the local area.

Starting with Primary Schools, the plan is to engage with 6/7 schools in Calderdale, including schools representing diverse cultural backgrounds, where teachers, pupils and parents may have never been to Heptonstall, Hebden Bridge or the Calder Valley.

The resources developed through this initiative will be utilised to re-interpret the current exhibition for children, providing them with bespoke information, stories and film to engage with them at the right level for learning.

The project also provides volunteering opportunities for some of our current volunteers who have teaching backgrounds, or would like to expand their knowledge and experience.

Heptonstall Museum: Photo: Nicola Jones

BIG THANK YOU!

We’re delighted to already have support from the Rotary Club of Hebden Bridge, who have kick started our fundraising campaign with £1000, provisional on match-funding raised.

Please help us by donating to our campaign.