Valerie gave an interesting background to the history of Paisley Museum and Art Gallery and its long association with Lifelong Learning in the area. The creation of the museum was inspired by the Philosophical Institute in 1808, and has had a grand tradition of holding lectures for local people, frequently attracting celebrity speakers. This has continued to the present day under a current scheme run in partnership with Paisley University begun in autumn 2003.

The museum had been holding year round, lunchtime lectures undertaken by curatorial staff and guest speakers. In the meantime, Paisley University were keen to run an accredited local history course. It was agreed to run the bulk of the lectures at the museum, utilising archive photos and objects from the collections as well as exhibitions and demonstrations to support the lectures. The university took responsibility for the administration and marketing – the museum developed the course content and the teaching.

The course consists of nine evening sessions, each lasting three hours and delivered by the three curatorial staff involved. To gain accreditation students are asked to submit three pieces of written work, plus a project of their own choice. The course proved popular from its inception and has attracted a regular audience of around 20, from a variety of different backgrounds. Its popularity has led to a new follow-up course being devised, which has been enthusiastically received by the students who completed the first year of the project.

Valerie went on to give a summary of their evaluation findings from the project. Although very time intensive for the staff involved – much more so that they had at first envisaged – the course has proved a success. The social aspect was a particular plus, Valerie noted, with people from very different backgrounds coming together to share their interest in local history – she stressed the importance of providing refreshment breaks for the participants. The access to the collections was another particular positive about the course, with the ‘hands-on’ aspect of the lectures providing a very different learning opportunity for the participants. Valerie was also enthusiastic about the partnership that had now developed with the university to provide a genuinely community based, quality learning opportunity for local adults.

Alicia Watson, Education and Access Curator, Glasgow City Council
Take Tea with the Masterpieces

The Gallery of Modern Art has been involved in a project in partnership with the ‘Contact the Elderly’ group. Alicia gave us an overview of the programme and how GoMA has engaged an older audience (70+) with the gallery’s collections.

Alicia explained that a new Seniors Programme had been implemented at the gallery to cater for the 55+ age group to make them feel welcome and catered for within the gallery. The programme was put together on the strength of a consultation process with various senior forums in Glasgow, who visited the gallery and gave their own feedback on existing facilities and provision.

The results of their recommendations formed the basis of a successful Big Draw event, which then led on to further projects as part of the ‘Encourage’ programme in Glasgow – a partnership between Glasgow City Council, Strathclyde University and the Senior Studies Institute.

Take Tea With the Masterpieces has come about as a result of involvement in this programme and the contacts made with agencies in Glasgow. One of these agencies Contact the Elderly is a national charity that exists to relieve the loneliness of very old people. As part of this work they had been organising sunday afternoon tea parties for elderly people to get together at each other’s houses. In partnership with GoMA, this has been taken a step further. Initially, volunteer drivers took the group to the gallery to meet, have refreshments and view the collections. This has now developed further and groups now have the opportunity to meet artists and curators and take part in workshops, talks and art activities. The volunteer drivers have also now taken a more active role in the whole day.

The programme was initially funded by a one-off start up grant from Contact the Elderly’– who also provided training for GoMA staff. Glasgow City Council has now taken on funding and the project continues, with groups of up to 15 attending on a regular basis.

Alicia highlighted the benefits that the scheme had brought to the gallery and the staff. As a result of the input from elderly groups, improvements in facilities and labelling had been made. Greater awareness of the needs of older people in respect of the education programme had resulted in a more inclusive programme and staff have benefited greatly from the training they have received. In addition, awareness of how to market their programme to a different audience has improved hugely as a result of input from the initial consultation groups.

Carolyn Blackburn, Education and Access Curator, Glasgow City Council
Flash of the ‘50s – People’s Palace Museum

The People’s Palace Museum recently ran an event entitled Flash of the 50’s which supported a temporary photographic exhibition Glasgow 1955: Through the Lens.

On the back of the exhibition, the museum ran a series of small events, with varying degrees of popularity. However, music and dance had proved particularly successful and the Flash of the 50s event came about as a result.

The museum saw the opportunity to involve local dance groups, coincide with the ‘Show Scotland’ weekend, utilise the Open Museum’s handling kit on the 1950s, highlight its own Barras Ballroom display and tap into Glasgow’s traditional passion for dancing.

An initial call out to local music and dance groups to perform – on a voluntary basis – met with an enthusiastic response and a programme for the day was put together from this. A ‘ballroom’ was set up in the Winter Gardens and an enthusiastic day of 50s inspired music and dance ensued. Visitor numbers for the day showed a marked improvement. As well as four groups who were invited from local residential and day care centres, Carolyn noted that the audience included a far larger number of seniors than would normally be in the museum, while at the same time undoubtedly appealing to the younger audience too;  and the total cost of the day? - less than £200!

The sociable nature of the event inspired many calls for a repeat or regular event. This has been taken on board by the museum who have already repeated a similar event - Fifties Finale – and are planning a more regular, flexible and sustainable seniors programme which will include special interest talks, facilitated and unfacilitated options and an annual intergenerational ‘event’.

Download further notes on Flash of the 50s  (PDF 14KB) (Word 32 KB)

Andrew Salmond, Arts Development Officer, West Dunbartonshire Council
Their Past, Your Future in West Dunbartonshire

Via the Scottish Museums Council, Dunbartonshire Council was awarded £48,000 by the Big Lottery Fund to run events and other initiatives to commemorate the 60th anniversary of VE Day. Andrew gave a comprehensive presentation of the results of this award winning project.

Their Past, Your Future was led by a partnership involving the Imperial War Museum, the Department for Education and Skills and the UK museums, libraries and archives sectors. The project offered a unique opportunity for inter-generational learning and appealed to a wide range of audiences - bringing together people of all ages to learn about the impact of the Second World War on Scotland. West Dunbartonshire was a particularly prevalent region for this project, given the effects of the Blitz in the area on people’s lives.

Initially, a working group of interested parties was established, which included representatives from a number of services within West Dunbartonshire Council. Importantly for the project, it also included representatives from the voluntary sector and the national and independent museums sectors. The result was a successful application to the Scottish Museums Council which garnered the highest grant award of £48, 000.

The money was spent on a comprehensive programme of events and resources, which Andrew illustrated to the group with assorted video clips of some of the events and participants enthusiastic responses to them. This included:

• education resource packs for schools and community groups

• creative writing sessions with children’s library users

• ‘evacuation’ drama reconstruction project with schools

• wartime living room recreation at Clydebank Museum

• resource packs for schools and community groups to organise a World War II street party

• Singer Sewing Machine factory reunion

• online digital resource focusing on the Clydebank Blitz

• National Commemoration Services

• transforming Clydebank Town Hall into a 1940s picture house – showing newsreel, cartoons and films from the period

• Big band concerts

• Massed choir concert

• music reminiscence concerts held in centres for the elderly across the local authority

The resulting evaluation of the project proved that it had been a huge success. The project won a COSLA award in the Advancing Community Well-being category and has attracted a further £50,000 of funding. This is to be used to create new projects in the same vein and to continue some of the successful programmes run in the previous year.

For further details please contact:

Kirsty Kennedy, Joint Area Convenor GEMS,
Shetland Museum & Archives

Hay’s Dock, Lerwick

Shetland  ZE1 0WP

Tel: 01595 741558

kirsty@shetlandmuseum.org.uk