Making a mark on history with the Past in Mind
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to give an account of the Past in Mind project, an innovative project run by Herefordshire Mind and funded by the Heritage Lottery which explored the relationship between the disciplines of archaeology and mental health recovery. It aimed to use that unexpected connection to offer new perspectives on the interpretation of the past, to combat stigma associated with mental illness, and to support participants’ personal journeys to better mental health.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is an account of the development and operation of the project given by the project manager, with other contributions from project participants.
Findings
The account of the project revealed that there was significant synergy between the processes of archaeology and the mental health recovery. The linkage between archaeology and mental health does had genuine value both for novel exploration of the past, and the exploration of personal understanding linked to mental health recovery.
Originality/value
The paper is the first account of a partnership project between an archaeology service and mental health recovery project. There is evident potential to learn from the Past in Mind project, and to develop other history/archaeology/mental health recovery collaborative projects of this kind.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Ian Bapty, Industrial Heritage Support Officer, Ironbridge Museums was the Senior Archaeologist on the Past and Mind project and co-author of the original brief for the Heritage Lottery Fund. His professional experience and humour were fundamental to the success of the project. Dr Kate Lack, Professional Historian contributed her extensive knowledge, enthusiasm, and sharp wit to this project. Claire Rush, volunteer established the Blog from the Bog. Her ability to reach people through her strong narratives proved to be inspirational.
Citation
Isabel McMillan, J. (2013), "Making a mark on history with the Past in Mind", Mental Health and Social Inclusion, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 195-201. https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-08-2013-0031
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited