Research Agenda And Strategy For The Historic Environment Of The East Midlands

David Knight (TPA), Blaise Vyner and Carol Allen

Introduction

This project commenced in January 2008 and represents the final phase for the East Midlands of the Regional Research Framework initiative proposed in the 1996 English Heritage document Frameworks for Our Past. It builds upon The East Midlands Archaeological Resource Assessment and Research Agenda, which was published in 2006 after extensive consultations between members of the region’s historic environment community (Cooper, N, ed. 2006. The Archaeology of the East Midlands, Leicester Archaeology Monographs No. 13, University of Leicester; www.le.ac.uk/ar/research/projects/eastmidsfw/index.html). The aim of the current project is to progress from Agenda to Strategy. This will allow us to move from the definition of research questions to the formulation of a prioritised strategy for their investigation.

This project is being co-ordinated by David Knight and Blaise Vyner, building upon work carried out in collaboration with Carol Allen from January 2008 to April 2009. It has been made possible by partnership funding provided by English Heritage, and is guided by a Steering Group with members drawn from the curatorial, academic, contracting and consultancy sectors. We have established a Technical Advisory Panel, comprising a broad range of period and subject experts who between them are able to offer specialist advice on all aspects of the historic environment. Beyond this, we have sought to engage widely with historic environment stakeholders across the region. We currently have a contact list of over 500 individuals, which grows steadily as additional organisations and individuals with a strong stake in the regional heritage are added.

Updating the Research Agenda

Several years have passed since contributions to The Archaeology of the East Midlands were submitted for publication, and for the current project it was agreed that the published Agenda be updated prior to commencing work on the Strategy. This was deemed necessary to ensure the inclusion of important new research, to embrace new concerns such as the impact of climate change (www.britarch.ac.uk/conservation/climate/workshop) and to formulate a more holistic approach to the historic environment.

Our first task, therefore, was to summarise the published Agenda and to circulate this summary for stakeholder comment (Agenda Summary Feb 08). This summary provided the foundation for a Public Seminar in May 2008, aimed at updating the Research Agenda and identifying priorities for further research (Agenda Seminar May 08).

We revised the original Agenda on the basis of input from Steering Group and Technical Advisory Panel members, comments received at the Public Seminar and email correspondence from Consultees. Stakeholder feedback at the Seminar highlighted the desirability of further consultation on the built environment resource, and it was decided to arrange a separate workshop in December 2008 for built environment specialists (Built Environment Workshop Programme). The principal aim of this meeting was to identify research priorities that could be integrated into the regional Agenda and to consider potential research strategies. The event was well attended, and generated two documents that were distributed to workshop attendees for comment. These were updated on the basis of feedback from Consultees (Built Env Research Agenda; Built Env Research Strategy) and comments on the research agenda were incorporated into a draft Updated Research Agenda that was circulated to Consultees in advance of a Strategy Workshop that was arranged for April 2009 (Agenda & Strategy Draft Mar 09).

Presenting the Agenda and Strategy

It was agreed in consultation with the Steering Group that the most useful product would be a concise, easily referenced and readable document integrating Agenda and Strategy in a tabular format. We devised a series of tables aimed at summarising succinctly by period the Agenda topics identified by consultation and proposed strategies for advancing understanding. Separate tables bringing together environmental issues were incorporated in the draft document that was distributed in advance of the Strategy Workshop, but environmental research themes and strategies have subsequently been integrated into all periods.

Agenda research topics are colour-coded in these tables and, within each topic, key research questions are listed. Tables listing Research Objectives are designed to be viewed on the facing page of the published booklet, emphasising the integration between Agenda and Strategy, and correlations between Agenda priorities and Research Objectives are noted. The tables are supplemented by summary descriptions of each Research Objective, details of links with other period or subject research strategies and supporting references in footnote format. This provides for each Research Objective a readily accessible source of information that we hope will facilitate further research and funding applications by stakeholders.

Developing the Research Strategy

The final and most challenging stage of this project has been the development of an agreed historic environment research strategy. Strategies were discussed at a workshop convened at the University of Nottingham in April 2009 (Strategy Workshop Programme), following circulation of a draft document incorporating the agreed Updated Research Agenda and templates for Research Objectives (Agenda & Strategy Draft Mar 2009). Strategies proposed by participants were incorporated on the day into a draft strategy document that was widely circulated for stakeholder feedback. Comments on this document, together with proposals made at the Built Environment Workshop, have been incorporated into a revised Updated Research Agenda and Strategy. Period syntheses, incorporating for each period an Updated Research Agenda table, a Research Objectives table and details of each Research Objective, have been prepared for the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic to Middle Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age and Iron Age, Romano-British, Early Medieval, High Medieval, Post-Medieval and Modern periods. PDFs of all sections may be downloaded from this website.

Timetable for completion

The period syntheses will form the basis of a published booklet to be launched in April 2011 (details to be circulated closer to the event).

Future developments

In the longer term, the Agenda and Strategy will be reviewed annually by the Steering Group over a five-year period, with the aim of monitoring progress and discussing changing research priorities. Beyond that, we hope that provision will be made for further review and revision.

Stakeholder involvement

The Research Agenda and Strategy is the product of extensive liaison with the historic environment community and it is essential that it reflects the views on regional research priorities and strategies of the whole community. We are keen, therefore, to receive continuing feedback on the period syntheses posted on this website. Please contact Alison Wilson if you would like to comment on the documents posted on this website. If you do not have email facilities, then comments can be posted to Ms A. Wilson, Trent & Peak Archaeology, Lenton Fields, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD. Alison will ensure that all comments are incorporated into the project archive and will pass them on to us so that they may be taken into account when preparing future revisions.

We have a list of some 500 Consultees to whom we email updates on progress, including details of forthcoming workshops, seminars and conferences. Please contact Alison by email or by post if you would like to be included on this list, which we are continually updating.

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