A first post in a series where we get to know a bit about the Greater Creative working party, the team behind all of the creative goings on in the parish. First up we hear a little bit from Katharine Childs.
Which part of the Parish do you live in? I live in Blackwell, and my home backs onto fields and faces Crich Stand. It’s a peaceful, beautiful place to live.
How did you hear about/get involved with the Working Party? I heard about it from Jodie Cresswell-Waring from Platform31 who explained that she was looking for people from a cross section of Blackwell Parish to get involved with a new project.
What were the reasons you wanted to be involved in the project? It sounded like something that could really make a difference to our communities in Blackwell Parish but also in a fun and creative way!
What do you hope to gain from being involved? I hope to be more connected with other people and groups in Blackwell Parish and to work together on mutual, shared goals.
What are you hoping that the project will bring to the parish? I hope that the project will change the spaces that we have in our parish, by giving them more creativity. I also hope that it will encourage people in the parish to get outdoors more, and to celebrate both the history of our villages as well as the wonderful countryside around us.
What have been the highlights of the project so far? I really enjoyed going to visit Cromford Mills and seeing how the charity who run it have used technology to help tell the story of Richard Arkwright and the mill. The Industrial Revolution is a key part of history now, and I think in years to come we will look back on the coal industry as another important part of our country’s heritage. Blackwell Parish was home to two collieries and it’s fascinating to look at how this influenced all aspects of day-to-day life.
Are there any future parts of the project that you are looking forward to working on? I’m really excited about ‘Roots to Routes’, the part of the project where we are developing an app for people to use and find out more about the history of the parish.