community – Industrial Heritage Networks

Dates for In-person IHN Autumn 2026 Meetings

September 29, 2026September 29, 2026mikenevell

The in-person Industrial Heritage Network meetings, run by the IHSO project, return this autumn, and the first round of dates are now available. These meetings are a great way of meeting fellow industrial heritage people working at industrial heritage and archaeology sites and exchanging experiences.

The themes for this year’s meetings are liaising with schools and adapting to hotter summers. Our first meeting of the season was last month (August), when the North West IHN met at Helmshore Textile Museum, where there was a great turn out and lively discussion. The confirmed dates for the in-person autumn 2026 meetings so far are:

Yorkshire IHN, 30 Sept: National Musuem of Mining, Wakefield
North East IHN, 14 Oct: Locomotion, Shildon
East Midlands IHN, 16 Nov: Taylors Bell Foundry, Loughborough
West Midlands IHN, 17 Nov: Hereford Waterworks Museum, Fareham
South East IHN, 19 Nov: The Brickworks Museum
London IHN, 20 Nov: Postal Museum

If you would like your site to take part in these friendly and free meetings please email the IHSO, Dr Michael Nevell, for more details: michael.nevell@nationaltrust.org.uk

*Delegates attending the North West IHN at Helmshore Textile Museum in August 2026. Image copyright Dr Michael Nevell.*

Industrial Heritage Sites Recieve Sandford Awards for 2026

September 28, 2026September 28, 2026mikenevell

Ten industrial heritage museums and sites have received a Sandford Award for 2026. This is a leading mark of quality for heritage learning, and is run by Lincoln Bishop University alongside the Heritage Education Trust. Applying for the Sandford Award is an opportunity to reflect on, strengthen, and gain independent recognition for the learning experiences sites offer.

The industrial museums and sites that have been recognised for their excellence through recieving the 2026 Award recipients | Heritage Education Trust are:

Bradford Industrial Museum
Discovery Museum & Tyne & Wear Archives
Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre
Hopetown Darlington
Middleport Pottery
National Museum of Computing (Bucks)
National Tramway
Port Sunlight Trust
Tower Bridge
Watercress Linbe Railway Heritage Trust

The Award is respected because it is independently assessed, expert-led and based on on-site assessment visits, not paperwork alone. Holding one can also aid further grant applications. Applications for the 2027 awards open on 30 November.

Amberley Museum and Sankey Canal Looking for Volunteers

September 21, 2026mikenevell

Two industrial heritage sites are looking for volunteers and new Trustees this September: Amberley Musuem and the Sankey Canal Restoration Society.

Amberley Museum, Sussex, is looking for a new Commercial Trustee to join their proactive board and help support the work of this unique open air working museum. They are looking for a new Trustee with a particular knowledge or experience of retail and catering sales and operations to bring those skills to their board. Marketing experience would also be helpful as well as a passion for heritage and the ability to think strategically, assess opportunities and manage risk. Trustees at Amberley Museum work with staff and volunteers, and bring their own knowledge and expertise from any public, private, or voluntary sectors. Trustees need to be able to make adequate time available for this role.

The closing date for applications is 25 September. Email Surrie Everett-Pascoe, Chair of Board of Trustees, for more details here: Surrie.everett-pascoe@amberleymuseum.co.uk or see the Amberley Musuem website: http://www.amberleymuseum.co.uk/

The Sankey Canal Restoration Society (SCRS), St Helens, will be working at the Old Double Lock on Saturday, September 26, and is appealing for people to help out between 10am and 2pm.. The team will be clearing vegetation from the lock and bywash area. Volunteers are asked to meet at Sankey Valley Visitor Centre, 275 Blackbrook Rd, Blackbrook, St Helens, WA11 0AB. The minimum age for participation is 18, but the society asks people to speak to them about opportunities for children. Tools and safety gear will be provided, but people are welcome to bring their own.

For more information, contact Ian Hornby at 07753 289765 or Neil Viggers at 07917 754548. More details here: Sankey Canal Restoration Society

*The limekilns at Amblerley Museum, Sussex. Image copyright Dr Michael Nevell*

*Volunteers working at the Sankey Canal. Image courtesy of the Sankey Canal Trust.*

New Research on Archaeology and Wellbeing

September 17, 2026September 16, 2026mikenevell

Historic England has supported a special issue of the online peer reviewed journal ‘Internet Archaeology’, which showcases the power of heritage-led wellbeing and how it can help progress the democratisation of heritage, diversify engagement, and help address societal inequalities.

Amongst the articles and case studies, two are especially relevant to industrial heritage museums and sites. Firstly, an article by Desi Gradinarove looks at two Historic England’s pilot studies for using heritage and social perscribing, outlined in HE’s Wellbeing and Heritage Strategy (see Historic England Research Issue 18, 2021). The two pilots showed the potential of heritage to deliver wellbeing and provided evidence on how it can work within social prescribing, and formed the basis of an HE sponsored Heritage and Social Prescribing Guidance.

Secondly, an article, co-authored by a team led by Karina Croucher, looked at place, identity and welling in the Bradford area, with the local university working with a variety of partner organsiations to explore the importance of identity, and the role of heritage and culture, for wellbeing, cohesion and resilience across three parent projects abd seven subsidiary projects. One of these, Saltaire: People, Heritage and Place (an AHRC Place-based programme) used digital twin technologies to explore heritage, alongside creative workshops with school learners, exploring their journeys, routes, and narratives within the industrial world heritage site.

This special edition of ‘Internet Archaeology’ provides useful case studies, methodologies, and approaches on how to intergrate health and wellbeing within an (industrial) archaeology context. To access this themed addition of the journal for free follow this link: Internet Archaeology. Issue 73. Wellbeing and Archaeology. 2026.

Canal Restoration Projects in England Update

September 8, 2026mikenevell

*Open day in July at the Staveley restoration works on the Chesterfield Canal. Image courtesy of the Chesterfield Canal Trust.*

The restoration of Britain’s canals is often thought to have ended with the re-opening of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, which celebrated this summer 25 years since it re-opened in 2001. However, the 21st century has seen a number of volunteer-led canal restoration projects progress across England and Wales, and several are now nearing the completion of their next stages.

The Chesterfield Canal Trust have been working on restoring the canal since the beginning of this century, and the latest section to be restored is through Staveley town centre, where work continues on rebuilding locks and a canal basin. Details here: Staveley Restoration Works – Chesterfield Canal Trust

The Cotswold Canal Trust continue their work on the ‘missing mile’ project which will see the Stroudwater Navigation waterway restored – alongside locks, bridges, and wetlands – to create a navigable route from the River Severn to River Thames. Work started this summer, after six years of planning, on Phase 1. 750m of new canal are currently being built on a new alignment necessitated by the building of the M5. Further details here: The Missing Mile: 300 Metres Dug and Discoveries Unearthed – Cotswold Canals Trust

The Wiltshire and Berkshire Canal Trust continue their work on restoring 70 miles of canal. The latest addition is the building of a swing bridge at Wichelstowe. Further details here: Wilts&BerksCanalTrust

Finally, the Canal and River Trust continue their work on repairing the January 2025 breach on the Langollen Canal at Whitchurch in Shropshire. Details here: Llangollen Canal Breach Repair Updates | Canal & River Trust

*Missing mile construction east of the M5. Image courtesy of Cotswold Canal Trust.*

Water Tower Fans Wanted: Volunteer Opportunity

August 24, 2026mikenevell

The British Water Tower Appreciation Society (BWTAS) has spent 20 years championing Britain’s water towers with exhibitions, tours, lectures, media appearances (yes, even William Shatner, Star Trek’s Captain Kirk!). Now their chairman, secretary, and treasurer are stepping down together, and they need three new officers to keep it going.

They have a healthy bank balance, hundreds of members, and hard-won trust with tower owners and heritage bodies. However, without new leadership, they’ll have to wind up the society.

If you are interested in helping the society navigate its future please email Nat Bocking, the general secretary, at: natbocking@icloud.com

And to find out more go their blog site here: British Water Tower Appreciation Society

The Resilience and Sustainability of Publically Accessible Industrial Heritage Sites in England: New Report

August 21, 2026mikenevell

A new report on Industrial Heritage Sites in England in 2026, commissioned by Historic England and the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, has been published. This report, by Heritage Innovation, examines the resilience and sustainability of designated industrial heritage sites across England.

Focussing on designated industrial heritage sites that are accessible and interpreted to the public in England, it is a major update on two previous English Heritage (now Historic England) commissioned reports, carried out in 1998 (by PLB Consulting Ltd) and 2008 (by the late Sir Neil Cossons). Drawing on desk-based research, questionnaires and interviews, its emphasis is on industrial sites open as heritage attractions, including both museums and monuments. There are sections on:

ownership
governance
function
finance
management
access
conservation
interpretation
and marketing

Having considered the findings, it concludes with a series of ten recommendations. These include strengthening advocacy, increased support for the IHSO project, revitalising volunteering, developing technical skills, continued sector monitoring, exploring new approaches to governance and funding, and researching heritage fuels. It also calls for a strategic review to set priorities for the industrial heritage sector over the next 25 years.

The report and its findings will help take forward the work of the Historic England-funded Industrial Heritage Support Officer (IHSO) project, hosted by the Ironbridge Gorge | National Trust (further details on the project here – https://industrialheritagesupport.com/ (this current website) and https://industrialheritagenetworks.com/). The IHSO project is also supported by the The Association for Industrial Archaeology.

Dr Mike Nevell, IHSO, thanked Heritage Innovations for their hard work in pulling together data from a very varied sector, noting that ‘this is the first study of the industrial hertiage sector in a generation. Its findings and recommendations will be of considerable interest to all those involved in the care and public presentation of England’s industrial heritage, especially local authorities and other public bodies, charitable trusts, and volunteer groups’.

To download the report follow this link: https://historicengland.org.uk/research/current/discover-and-understand/industry-and-infrastructure/industrial-heritage-in-england/.

Further details about Heritage Innovation’s other work can be found here: Heritage Innovation | Cultural Heritage Consultancy UK

*The Longwarehouse and Museum of Iron, part of the National Trust Ironbridge Gorge sites taken over in March 2026 from the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust. Image copyright Dr Michael Nevell*

Inland Waterways Association Helps Canal & River Trust to Update its Restoration Delivery Plan

August 17, 2026mikenevell

The Inland Waterways Association (IWA) has worked with Canal & River Trust (CRT) to help improve its revised Restoration Delivery Plan (RDP), published 28th July. This document will provide the framework for future restoration of canals not currently open to boats and managed by the CRT.

The Restoration Delivery Plan is intended to set out how the CRT will work with restoration promoters and other partners to deliver the restoration of waterways across England and Wales. As a critical friend to CRT, IWA has engaged constructively with the Trust’s senior management to ensure that restoration receives the support and strategic priority it deserves. By reinforcing the importance of a friendly approach to waterway restoration and encouraging CRT to consider restoration as a core charitable objective rather than a secondary priority, the IWA has helped move the document towards a more positive, practical, and delivery-focused one.

The IWA noted that the discussions between the IWA and CRT have also led to improvements in CRT’s internal restoration processes and a better mutual understanding of how restoration activity should be managed across the Trust’s network. This, however, needs to be matched by restoration groups becoming increasingly professional when undertaking construction work, both onsite and with design and Health & Safety paperwork.

For more details follow this link: IWA secures improvements to Canal & River Trust’s Restoration Delivery Plan – The Inland Waterways Association

Wiltshire Industrial Archaeology Conference 2026: From Branch Lines to Tram Lines

August 11, 2026mikenevell

The 2026 Wiltshire Industrial Archaeology Conference will take place on 24th October at Devizes Town Hall, which is located on the first floor of the building. It is accessible via a wide staircase, or a platform lift. There is an accessible toilet on the first floor of the building. The programme is as follows:

9.30 am – Registration

10 am – Welcome by Mike Stone Chairman of the Industrial Archaeology Committee at Wiltshire Museum.

10.05 am – The Calne branch and its industries, by Mike Stone. Mike was curator of Chippenham Museum and regularly lectures on a wide range of subjects.

10.50 am – Coffee

11.10 am – History of the Midland South Western Junction Railway, by Nick Baxter MA in Public History. Nick is a retired secondary school history teacher. He gives history talks and guided walks as part of his ‘Wiltshire History Man’ business.

12 noon – The Wantage tramway, by Dr Richard Marks, historian. ‘Industry Past’.

12.50 pm – LUNCH BREAK.
Lunch is not provided, please bring your own, or there are numerous bars and cafes in the Market Place, just a short walk from the Town Hall.

2.15 pm – A compendium of delights relating to the Malmesbury Branch, by Mike Fenton, railway historian.

3 pm – Tea

3.25 pm – The railway, locomotives and history 1916-1919 of the H.M.E.F. Stratton, Swindon: Ammonium Nitrate Explosive Works, research by Colin Judge of the Industrial Railway Society. Presented by Malcolm Holland, local historian.

4.30 pm – Conference ends

To book follow this link: Booking for events – Wiltshire Museum

‘Silver End 100’: Heritage Open Day Celebrates Industrial Company Housing in Essex, 13th September

July 29, 2026July 28, 2026mikenevell

During the 19th and early 20th century industrial companies provided housing and community facilities for their workforce, demonstrating both philanthropy and good business sense. Essex has a number of examples of this which will be celebrated on 13th September, as part of Heritage Open Days at Silver End village.

Silver End Heritage Society and the Essex Industrial Archaeology Group are running the celebration day with talks, walks, and displays exploring the company housing of Silver End village, built by the Crittall family who manufactured metal window frames. Details on the events and how to book the tours are below.

IHN Guidelines

Welcome to the IHNs website!

Your News and Your Stories

Tag: community