The Past Meets the Present
In May 2011 the Library completed a three-year project, The Past Meets the Present: a History of Working Lives, thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The project aimed to bring to life the Library's unique hidden collections and make them accessible to the whole community. It has been resoundingly successful.
`I...found a huge collection of items, all extremely interesting and some attractive, informative and interesting displays, a knowledgeable, affable and interesting guide who gave a great tour of the building'
During the Lottery project the Library has worked with schoolchildren and young people to encourage them to build connections between history and their own lives. From
* radical writer Thomas Paine to
* Victorian children at work and
* women`s struggle for the vote,
there are so many links waiting for them to make:
‘I have felt inspired by the people we've spoken about. It has made me realise that I shouldn't stand for things that I don't think are right, that are happening right in front of my eyes'
'The penny dropped for the students when they saw the reaction of their audience to the events they were portraying and they realised that for those people in the audience who had lived through these events they were of massive significance... when they saw the audience response that was so moving. It made it real for them - this history was powerful stuff'
And we've built links with local people, with open days and talks on Salford`s working lives:
‘Your Salford history events have helped to partially restore a very fragmented working class community'
`I feel part of it now, I feel I could knock on the door and ask for what I wanted'
'The huge gains in visibility and access during the Lottery scheme must be consolidated. This is challenging in the current climate but the Library's new and existing supporters make it more possible. Their advocacy is the key to future success' -
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