National Digitial War Memorial in Staffordshire

In February 2014 the Society of Chief Librarians (SCL) was awarded a grant of £196,110 from the National Lottery supported Grants for the Arts: libraries fund through Arts Council England to support a range of projects that will enable community groups to create their own unique responses to the First World War. With the help of local artists, libraries’ rich and diverse collections will be used to stimulate reflection and discussion and provide the starting point for deeper engagement and artistic interpretation. The local projects will all have a digital dimension in order to reach as wide an audience as possible.

Staffordshire’s Library and Archive service have been involved in part of the overall project called The Hidden Pressures on Staffordshire’s War. In project 1  year 10 students of Rural Studies at Thomas Alleynes High School worked with Born Communication to look at issues relating to the pressures on Agriculture and Food through their own allotment plots, sessions at Uttoxeter Library with original accounts of the time and a visit to Shugborough Farm.

Janene Cox, SCL President, said: “This project will connect the current strengths of libraries in the area of digital information with the opportunity to develop creative digital content and increase the confidence of library staff to engage with this fast developing aspect of cultural activity. It’s another great example of how libraries collaborate nationally through SCL to bring real local benefit to local communities.”