Press release

Fenland Changemakers: Young Volunteers Make a Difference

Museums in Cambridgeshire secures National Lottery support

Museums in Cambridgeshire has received a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £61,100 for an exciting heritage project, Fenland Changemakers set in the Cambridgeshire Fens and Ramsey. This project has been made possible by money raised by National Lottery players, the project focuses volunteer engagement along with exploring local changemakers who have made a social impact in the area and will start April 2021.

Supported through The National Lottery Heritage Fund and working with our arts partners, 20/Twenty and Cambridgeshire County Council Essential Skills the project will engage local young people and families to lead on a volunteering training programme which will include research, exhibitions, training, social media and digital design.    A year-long project in two phases which will provide young people in Fenland & Ramsey, Cambridgeshire with new, flexible ways to get involved in volunteering at local museums, enabling greater diversity in the museum workforce and greater cultural equity between generations of local residents.

The first phase will improve the volunteering offer for young people across the well-established Fenland museum network comprising of Chatteris Museum, Whittlesey Museum, Thorney Museum, Wisbech & Fenland Museum, March Museum & Ramsey Rural Museum, introducing better safeguarding measures and opening up new opportunities to engage with collections and train in all areas of museum work. The second phase invites creative young people to discover their heritage through the stories and actions of Fenland’s great social reformers. Taking inspiration from these extraordinary stories our young Changemakers will lead on their own exhibition programme and a social action campaign reflecting their own interests and community concerns. These two phases will encourage our young Changemakers’ transition into the museum sector and facilitate relevance and resilience for the museums.

The expected result of the project is that museums will be better equipped to welcome young volunteers and our new recruits will become enthusiastic champions of their heritage and leaders in their communities.

Emma Bunbury from Cambridgeshire County Council and Museums in Cambridgeshire said “We are thrilled to have received this support thanks to National Lottery players and are confident the project will support young people and their local communities to explore their local changemakers whilst increasing their skills and opportunities within the Heritage sector.

About Museums in Cambridgeshire

The project is led by Museums in Cambridgeshire (MiC), an independent, constituted association of 30 accredited museums and 2 associated heritage organisations who work in partnership to deliver collaborative community heritage and museum projects.

About The National Lottery Heritage Fund

Using money raised by the National Lottery, we Inspire, lead and resource the UK’s heritage to create positive and lasting change for people and communities, now and in the future. www.heritagefund.org.uk.

Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and use #NationalLotteryHeritageFund  For further information, images and interviews please contact Emma Bunbury at Museums of Cambridgeshire on emma.bunbury@cambridgeshire.gov.uk