Heartlands team gather stories to further inspire the project

The memories and experiences of local people that live in the area surrounding the Heartlands Project in Pool are being gathered by primary school pupils.

Year five pupils from seven local schools are busy recalling their experiences of growing up and living in the area and speaking to older generations in their family to learn about their memories.

The stories that are gathered will help form part of the Heartlands Social History archive which will be accessible to all of the commissioned artists working on the project. The stories will enable the artists to gain inspiration and base their ideas on real accounts and experiences of the area.

Cllr Carolyn Rule, Kerrier District Council’s portfolio holder for economy and regeneration, said: “It’s great to see all generations getting involved with making their mark on the Heartlands Project.

From the start of the project the creative ideas from the very people that live in the area have helped shape the plans. As the project gathers pace the pupils involved with the story telling event can feel a real sense of pride that their ideas and experiences have helped inspire the project.”

Paul Annear, from Pool Business & Enterprise College is working with Kirsty Davies, Heartlands Community Project Manager, to collect the stories through a series of workshops with the pupils.

Kirsty said: “The children we’ve worked with so far are delighted to be involved and have had a great time recalling their own memories. All the students have said how exciting it has been to go home and learn more about the history of the area from their family members and said they’ve learnt a lot in the process.”

All the 220 pupils involved with the story gathering will exhibit their work at a celebration event on March 24, from 9:30am- 12pm at Carn Brea Leisure Centre. The event will be open to parents, relatives and the public and will be a showcase of all the stories and memories of the area.

Pupils will be rewarded for their work and will be presented with a Heartlands bookmark and certificate. Four winning pupils from each school will also receive a book token and will feature in a booklet about the project.