Seaton Delaval Hall
The National Trust has been awarded a grant of £24,400 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for a project which aims to bring the heritage of Seaton Delaval Hall to life.
Entitled the Delaval Lives project, the Trust team will work with the community to investigate the lives of people who lived and worked at the Hall and learn to share their stories in a new and fun way.
Commenting on the award, Helen Nisbet Project Manager for the National Trust said:
“This funding is a brilliant start to 2012 and it means that we can help our visitors and local communities understand and learn about the history of the Hall and about how the National Trust are committed to bringing their properties to life. We are really excited about the Delaval Lives project and look forward to taking people on this journey with us!”
During the next few months the Trust will be inviting the local community to participate in costume making workshops led by North East based designer Paul Shriek. The workshops will include researching, designing and creating costumes and participants will learn the art of costume making and sewing. The final pieces will be showcased in a spectacular Georgian catwalk show early in the summer and afterwards used to create a dressing up box for visitors.
The HLF funding will also enable volunteers at the hall to learn the art of story telling from a professional story teller, reflecting on theatre, industry, tragedy and the comedy that the Hall and its inhabitants have witnessed over the centuries. In addition, the Hall will make education packs for local schools and offer other educational activities looking at 18th century family life, the lives of servants, estate workers local industry.
Helen continued:
“The overall aim is to bring the place to life in a unique way in the hope to widen our appeal and offer and to make a visit to the Hall special and fun!”
The Delaval Lives project is a partnership with the Northumberland Archives at Woodhorn Museum who have loaned the Delaval section of their Working Lives exhibition to Seaton Delaval Hall. The exhibition draws on archival information and stories about the Hall and its characters during the late 1700’s during the time of the cutting of Seaton Sluice. The exhibition opens this weekend at Seaton Delaval Hall.
Explaining the importance of the HLF support, the head of HLF in the North East Ivor Crowther said:
“At HLF we always look to fund projects that are interesting and different, and that will reach out to new audiences and providing innovative and exciting learning opportunities for everybody to enjoy. We were therefore delighted to be able to support the Delaval Lives project which will give communities across the North East a chance to show their passion and creativity, as well as creating fun new opportunities for visitors to explore the history of Delaval Hall.”
Find out more about Seaton Delaval Hall on the official Northumberland visitor website.
