In 2006 the Lake District National Park Authority received Heritage Lottery funding to increase understanding and awareness of the archaeological resource in the National Park. The methods identified to achieve this were: a set of six leaflets, a touring exhibition, education resources, internet-based information and an outreach programme.

The first thing to materialise from the project was the leaflets. Each was intended to be a general introduction to 36 archaeological sites that can be visited in the National Park. The leaflets-Working the landscape, Stories in Stone, Talking to the past, Sea to Skyline, Rocks, routes and rivers and Houses, huts and history contain lots of information, pictures and illustrations. They were launched in October 2007 and distributed to tourist information centres, museums and libraries around Cumbria. Feedback has been extremely positive and they are flying off the shelves.

The touring exhibition, Unlocking the past, understanding the present, will be at the Lake District National Park Visitor Centre, Brockhole, Windermere from 14 March until 2 November 2008. The exhibition tells the ‘human’ story of the Lake District landscape. The aim of the exhibition was to provide a brief introduction to the archaeology and history of the National Park while trying to dispel the idea that the landscape was created entirely by natural processes.

The exhibition will tour museums and libraries in Cumbria and has been booked up by venues until 2010.

A Key Stage 1 and 2 resource has been produced and is being rolled out to all of the primary schools in Cumbria. The Romans in the Lake District is a 28-page booklet which sets out lesson plans and provides background information to the Roman occupation in the Lake District. A CD comes with the booklet and contains worksheets for pupils, lots of photos and extra resources that can be used in the classroom. Teacher training is currently being undertaken and initial feedback praises the use of local finds and sites.

Work is just beginning on the Key Stage 3 resource, the topic of which will be the Industrial Revolution.

The Lake District Historic Environment Record (HER) has around 7,000 entries. Summaries for each record were produced to make them suitable for putting online. The HER is currently being prepared by the Archaeological Data Service (ADS) and will be available online at the end of March 2008. Other online resources will be available in the coming year on the LDNPA’s website http://www.lake-district.gov.uk/index/understanding.htm and will include case studies, downloadable resources, online games and much more.

The remainder of the project will use the resources that have been created to undertake an outreach programme. This is still in its early stage of development but will include provision for local groups and societies in the area as well as schools, youth groups and minority audiences.

Lisa Keys

Access to Archaeology Project Officer

Lake District National Park Authority