News - Memorial work wins accolade (

A heritage society has won an award for its work with children and young people at the Nottinghamshire Heritage Awards ceremony in Nottingham.


Bilsthorpe Heritage Society was honoured for its work on its Miners’ Memorial, erected last year to commemorate the miners who died at Bilsthorpe pit between 1927 and 1997.

When planning the project, the society went to schools and asked the children to design how they thought the monument should look.

After receiving 240 suggestions from pupils, the society shortlisted 12 drawings which were narrowed down to three by an independent panel.

Finally a public vote decided the winner, and children attended the memorial opening.

Mr Trevor Goodman, chairman of Bilsthorpe Heritage Society, said: “It’s a big thing for us, and it’s nice to be recognised. We see it as an award for the whole village rather than just the society.

“A lot of the children we asked have had grandparents or other family connected to the pit, and before the memorial was erected there was nothing to remind them of the village’s history.”

The society, which has about 25 members, also won an inspiration award and was highly commended by Nottinghamshire Heritage Forum and Nottingham Trent University.

Dr Kevin Gould, history lecturer at Nottingham Trent University, said: “The awards reflect the excellence in Nottinghamshire’s heritage and the great work that goes into caring for it, and enabling people to enjoy it.”

The monument cost £14,000 and contains the names of 77 miners who died.

From: http://www.newarkadvertiser.co.uk/articles/news/Memorial-work-wins-accolade

News - Top prize goes to museum of county's mechanical history

A MUSEUM dedicated to showcasing the mechanical history of Nottingham landed the top prize at an awards ceremony.


The county's best historical museums were among the award winners at the Nottinghamshire Heritage Awards, at the Lakeside Arts Centre.

The top prize, for Heritage Site of the Year, went to the Nottingham Industrial Museum at Wollaton Park, with their collection including restored Raleigh bicycles and lace making machinery.


Councillor David Trimble, Nottingham City Council's portfolio holder for leisure, culture and tourism, said: "This is fantastic news and a great accolade for our 75 volunteers who have made it possible for the Industrial Museum site to re-open this year.

"The museum offers an insight into Nottingham's rich industrial heritage and the collections include transport, steam engines, agricultural machinery and technology from the city's past, plus some of the most important lace making machinery which put Nottingham on the textile map.

"We're delighted that over the past year we have been able to work with such a hugely enthusiastic group of volunteers who have committed thousands of hours to develop their skills and make improvements to the museum and revitalise the museum's collections."

Other winners on Wednesday included the Nottinghamshire Archives, which took the prize for Inspiration Award for Best Special Project and Outstanding Achievement Award.

Team manager Mark Dorrington said: "We are obviously very pleased with the awards – we don't just keep records here, we are keen to share the county's history with as many people as possible."

Other winners included the Mansfield Museum, the Bilsthorpe Heritage Society, and The Queen's Royal Lancers and Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum.



Doctor Kevin Gould, principal lecturer in late medieval and early modern history at Nottingham Trent University, was on the judging panel and paid tribute to the winners.



He said: "Choosing the winners from such a strong field has been an extremely difficult task."

From: http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/prize-goes-museum-county-s-mechanical-history/story-16567764-detail/story.html