Digitally Disrupting the Archives

In 2024 Northumberland Archives were awarded a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to develop an exciting creative digital project working with youth groups in Wooler and the Tyne Valley.

‘Digitally Disrupting the Archives’, which officially launched in June 2024, aims to introduce young people to archives, enabling them to discover how the past affects the future, to explore the history of their home county, and inspire them to develop creative digital outputs influenced by their experience of the archive.

Ideas for the year-long project were devised with input from the young people themselves – from making films, TikToks and YouTube videos, to creating a touring escape room.

The groups will work closely with Northumberland Archives staff throughout the project, including visiting archive service points at Woodhorn and Berwick to see the collections in situ. The young people and archive staff will also collaborate with creative practitioners such as a professional filmmaker, theatre director, games designer and set designer.

At the end of the project a series of events will showcase the end results – from a film premiere to a touring escape room. This will be shared with the wider community throughout Northumberland, with the aim of boosting interest in the archives and generating engagement from young people.

Northumberland Archives sees this as a transformative project for the service – revolutionising the way we use archives with young people and the wider community.