Celebrating Hounslow's Heritage

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Exploring attitudes towards shared community heritage in the London Borough of Hounslow, 2019

A SHORT REPORT TO HELP YOU PLAN AND DELIVER YOUR NEXT HERITAGE PROJECT IN HOUNSLOW

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INTRODUCTION How engaged is the local community with Hounslow’s heritage?

What aspects of Hounslow’s heritage interests the local community the most?

What could make people engage with Hounslow’s heritage more?

ArtReach hosted a public consultation to answer these questions and establish how the local community felt about Hounslow and its heritage, and what were the shared heritage interests.

From exploring interests in the different communities that have shaped the modern Borough - to the rich aviation history, the origins of Hounslow’s green spaces, to the bustle of the town centre’s architectural gems - this report provides a summary of the responses gathered through this consultation and takes a view on the aspects of Borough’s heritage that could spark interest and lead to increased engagement with community heritage offers, both temporary and permanent.

The consultation gathered feedback from 164 people through: •Discussion groups hosted in community centres •Conversation pods hosted at public events and the Treaty Centre •Creative workshops with children and young people and their families at Night of Festivals •Online surveys shared on social media This consultation took place along side the annual community event Night of Festivals and as part of a wider exploration of heritage in Hounslow, entitled ‘Community heritage in Hounslow: archiving and sharing migration experiences’. Using stories and experiences from families who migrated to Hounslow in the 60s and 70s, the project unearthed and shared the moments and memories that help turned the Borough into one of the most diverse communities in the country.

Read more and hear some of the stories at www.nightoffestivals.com

WHAT IS SHARED HERITAGE? For this project, the term Shared Community Heritage is used to describe cultural, physical or social assets that are connected to range of communities and create linked or shared identities.

To provide participants with guidance on the term, the following prompts were used throughout the consultation: The people of Hounslow and how different communities have shaped the modern Borough Religious or cultural influences in the Borough and the impact these have from the places people eat or shop Festivals and celebrations and understanding more about the origins of local feasts, the fairs, parties and other cultural events Transport and Hounslow’s rich aviation history, its coach, train and waterway links Industrialisation and what was made in Hounslow how and by whom Outdoor spaces and parks and the broader public realm including what has been lost to urban development and is still here Buildings, from the nice ones, the not so nice ones, the big ones and the small ones – what is their significance and how are they maintained.

The Tamil Foundation, perfroming a tradional tamil dance in Bell Square (2017)

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WHO TOOK PART: AGE THE DATA

WHAT THIS TELLS US Many of the respondents were aged 35-39. The consultation sessions were delivered in family friendly spaces, workshops and public events and so we can assume that this is why this group formed a large contingent of those that took part.

Overall, the consultation received a good spread of responses across the age ranges and even included feedback from Under 16s where they were accompanied by an adult And willing to take part.

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WHO TOOK PART: ETHNICITY THE DATA

WHAT THIS TELLS US The majority of respondents in the consultation stated that they were from ethnic minority groups.

Respondents who stated that their ethnic background was Indian formed the largest group followed by White British.

Click here to read demographic data for Hounslow as published in the 2011 census

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WHO TOOK PART: POSTCODE THE DATA

WHAT THIS TELLS US ArtReach gathered some location data. This was always an optional and open question and so this hasn’t resulted in clear data.

Although responses weren’t specific, 56% said that they were local to Hounslow or resided in a Borough of Hounslow postcode. A significant proportion did not respond.

“Hounslow has been our home for over 40 years. We’ve worked here and we are now H Eretired I M A Nhere.

S O FI’ve T Wgot A R many E L A memories BS of Hounslow when we arrived in Britain in the 70s.”

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FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS PEOPLE, COMMUNITY AND IDENTITY FEATURE IN ‘HERITAGE’ DEFINITIONS All consultation activities started off with an open question asking, ‘how might you define heritage?” or “What does heritage mean to you?” A code analysis Highlighted that people’s initial views on heritage often referred to people and communities or aspects of identity or culture.

46%

of responses mentioned ‘communities’ in their definition of ‘Heritage’

“So many religions here….We have so many different types of people here. I think it’s important considering the way things are now.”

“What has come before us.”

“For me, heritage is more about identity. Something personal to me or my community.”

“Hounslow has many local heroes such as Phil Collins, Richie Blackmore and Eelppie Island”

“It is where we come from and who we are.”

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FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS PEOPLE, COMMUNITY AND IDENTITY FEATURE IN ‘HERITAGE’ DEFINITIONS From sourcing information on the internet about Hounslow’s heritage, to telling stories, or remembering Hounslow in yesteryear, or attending special heritage events, our consultation found that people do regularly consider local heritage and take action – the most popular action being searching the internet.

However, the consultation found that people do not regularly attend public events about Hounslow’s heritage and tend to stay in their ‘comfort zone’.

Many respondents were unaware of the offers or discussed barriers to attending such as whether heritage was something that their children could be interested in or feeling that it is ‘not for them’.

But when highlighting the key themes of Heritage and the strengths of Hounslow’s offer, overall respondents said this was something they were keen to learn more about.

Images from ArtReach's 'pop-up' muesum as part of Night of Festivals 2018 here find H EClick IMAN S Oto FT W Aout R Emore LABS

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FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS HIGH INTEREST IN THE HERITAGE OF FESTIVALS, OUTDOOR SPACES AND BUILDINGS

58%

extremely interested in knowing more about the heritage of festivals and celebrations

52%

extremely interested in knowing more about the heritage of outdoor spaces

39%

extremely interested in knowing more about the heritage of buildings

So what about the people?

When presented with a range of heritage definitions, interest in exploring the people and communities of Hounslow was not seen as something that many people were ‘extremely interested’ in. Though, most respondents (54%) stated they were moderately interested’ in this aspect of heritage

“For me, heritage is more about identity. Something personal to me or my community.”

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FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS USE NON-TRADITIONAL HERITAGE SPACES

Treaty

59%

stated the Treaty Centre / shops is a place that they would like to see more heritage

16%

Stated that they were “not interested” in seeing more heritage

49%

stated cafes are a place that they would like to see more heritage

…but people had other ideas for how they could discover more about ‘shared heritage’, such as Pubs Early Years Heritage projects Social media and dedicated online profiles Animate open spaces and make them more interesting, incorporating history in existing architecture

“Hounslow has been our home for over 40 years. We’ve worked here and we are now H Eretired I M A Nhere.

S O FI’ve T Wgot A R many E L A memories BS of Hounslow when we arrived in Britain in the 70s.”

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FINDINGS AND REFLECTIONS FESTIVALS AND COMMUNITY EVENTS PRESENT AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE MORE

44%

Preferred special festivals and events to celebrate heritage

36%

Prefered online sources to celebrate heritage

37%

Prefered books and magazines to celebrate heritage

What surprised us?

More traditional formats such as books and magazine are still seen as an important way to celebrate heritage.

Other interesting ideas included “I’d subscribe to a local podcast about heritage, you know, like people’s stories or interesting events in history.”

“Street art of heritage on walls i.e. community , lamp posts or water parks”

Our example In response to Oral History interviews, local pupils from 2 Hounslow schools, worked with renowned comic illustrator, Kev F Sutherland, to reimagine some of the stories and create their very own Hounslow Histories comic. You can read them here!

We have so many different types of people here. I think it’s important considering the way H Ethings I M A Nare SO FTWARE LABS now.”

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5 KEY TAKE AWAYS EXPLORE HERITAGE THROUGH PEOPLE & COMMUNITIES Whilst there is a clear understanding of physical heritage (i.e buildings and artefacts), most people see heritage through a social and cultural lens. This means that linking projects and activity back to local communities and society will increase interest and engagement.

USE TRADITION & CUSTOM AS PLATFORMS FOR EXPLORATION Respondents were extremely interested in the heritage of festival and celebrations. Using annual celebrations (such as Diwali, Holi, St George’ Day, May Day) as context and a platform for projects or activity will provide a useful focus and context for a variety of heritage led pursuits.

USE MAINSTREAM AND 'NONHERITAGE' SPACES IN EXHIBITIONS Regularly engaged audiences will already seek out heritage in libraries, the local archives and in dedicated heritage spaces such as museums; to support wider engagement, activity and projects should use non-traditional heritage spaces and meet the audiences and participants in places they are more comfortable visiting – for example cafes, the theatre and shopping centres.

USE A VARIETY OF TOOLS TO SHARE AND ENGAGE When sharing research or new material, think about using 2 or more tools for communicating with audiences. The data suggests there is no one platform that is preferred by audiences, and by using a range of communication methods a wide range of people will be engaged. Think about podcasts, comics, books and social media platforms.

TO REQUEST A PAPER COPY OF THIS REPORT PLEASE CONTACT ARTREACH HEIMAN SOFTWARE LABS www.artreach.biz

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