Skills for the Future

8 June 2010

A grant of £484,100 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) will allow RCAHMS to deliver a programme of skills training in the documentation and dissemination of archive and museum collections.

RCAHMS will offer a total of 21 one-year placements to people currently under-represented in the archive and museum sector. These will provide the opportunity to learn essential and transferable sectoral skills, including how to document, conserve and digitise collection items, and how to develop communications and education programmes which inspire learning, participation and enjoyment.

The project will also create a distance learning module with a number of Higher Education institutions.

The grant is part of the HLF’s ‘Skills for the Future’ programme, an initiative which is investing £17m in 54 projects throughout the UK, with 7 taking place in Scotland. The funding will deliver 808 placements in total, adding up to 780 years’ worth of training opportunities for people seeking a career in heritage.  It will not only support traditional conservation training but also a wide variety of more contemporary skills, such as managing volunteers and using social media to get people involved in heritage, helping to reinvigorate and broaden the appeal of the heritage industry to job-seekers.

Dame Jenny Abramsky, Chair of the HLF, said, “When the recession kicked-in last year we thought very hard about how the Heritage Lottery Fund could make a difference to people’s lives at a time of real need.  The answer was an innovative and ambitious programme focusing on equipping people with practical skills to help them secure future employment. We’re delighted to be supporting 54 projects – from learning how to digitise archives to conserving historic gardens – and we know that the range of placements on offer will attract people who might not previously have considered working in heritage.”