Ormskirk’s Historic England Pilot HAZ, Cultural Programme 2019/2020
Partners: West Lancashire Borough Council, Ormskirk Community Partnership, Ormskirk and District Family History Society, Edge Hill University, Learning Stars, Ormskirk Schools, West Lancashire College & The Chapel Ormskirk.
Funders: Historic England, Arts Council England and Positive Placemakers CIC.
This project was facilitated during the pandemic and included the development of a Virtual Museum for Ormskirk- a place where individuals could access the towns unique history by visiting different rooms and exploring their content.
Exhibitions Included Ormskirk’s Community Partnership Town Centre Trail with content provided by Ormskirk and District Family Heritage Society. Exhibitions were created by West Lancashire College students and Ormskirk school children, focusing on their unique experience of covid.
An online resource was also planned to provide increased access to heritage and deliver a valuable educational and community resource. It included a third space that was planned to open to other groups and organisations to promote aspects of the town’s unique and fascinating heritage.
The project included:
o An Exhibition at Chapel Gallery – Celebrating Ormskirk’s Heritage
o The development of a Virtual Museum – to preserve heritage for future generations and provide a valuable resource for schools and the community.
o Ormskirk 100 Years from Now – Town Centre Pop Up Art Installation – Artist and Senior lecturer Alex Jukes from Edge Hill University created an animated installation cocreated with pupils from local schools,
o The Time Tardis – A Temporary Mini Museum in the Ormskirk Town Centre Telephone Box. Artist Julie James Turner was commissioned to work with a group of vulnerable adults, to create artwork celebrating aspects of local heritage. It provided connections, developing aspirations and connecting people during a difficult period. The idea was to continue with commissioning new displays that would become an attraction for the town, linked to the virtual museum.
Raising awareness of local heritage
Preserving heritage for future generations
Create wellbeing opportunities
Animating the high street
Ormskirk Inspired Illustrations
Illustrator Maxine Lee-Mackie created a number of fantastic illustrations for the project. These were used to animate the town centre, in the exhibition, within the virtual museum and on all of the branding, used for marketing , publicity including the town centre banners.
The Time Tardis
Created during the COVID 19 lockdown.
Artists Julie James Turner and Andy Shaw worked with individuals with Aspergers and learning difficulties to create individual installations, inspired by local heritage. These collectively formed a temporary mini museum inside a telephone box located in Ormskirk Town Centre.
Contact with participants was maintained via telephone, zoom sessions, letters and postal deliveries.
Ormskirk 100 Years From Now
Artist Alex Jukes working in collaboration with children from Ormskirk C of E Primary School and West End Primary School.
Virtual Museum
To combat COVID-19 restrictions and to bringthe project to a wider audience a virtual muesum of Ormskirk History was created.
Little Vikings & The Gingerbread Men
An interactive town trail provided an outdoor fun activity during the pandemic, while raising awareness of local heritage.
Education Resources
Local school children were encouraged to be come History Detectives, using educational resources and the virtual museum.
These educational resources were created for Ormskirk’s pilot Historic England HAZ, that successfully delivered on all the outcomes during the pandemic.
It was greatly appreciated by local schools. However, due to unforeseen difficulties, the next phase of development was unable to progress, which would have established the virtual museum as part of an ambitious project planned to assist in regeneration.
Please note that at present the links to the Museum are not active.