From left to right: Louise Jutton (library staff), Dawn Jutton (Staffordshire Poet Laureate), and Ben Cunliffe (archives and heritage staff) put the finishing touches TO ‘Pride in Our Past’ parade float.
Staff from Staffordshire County Council’s Archives and Heritage Service launched their Pride in Our Past LGBTQ+ Community History Project at the first-ever Stafford Pride Festival on Saturday, August 10.
Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Pride in Our Past LGBTQ+ Community History Project aims to increase representation of LGBTQ+ histories across the archive and museum collection. COLLECTIVE will bring together ephemera items that speak to the histories of LGBTQ+ communities across Staffordshire, preserving these vital stories for now and the future.
Examples might include leaflets and posters, pins/badges, letters, clothing, and photographs: anything with a link to LGBTQ+ past or present.
If you have any questions about items you’d like to donate, or about the donation and archiving process, email hannah.grangesales@staffordshire.gov.uk.
Victoria Wilson, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for Communities and Culture, said: “We’re determined to make our service as inclusive as possible and as part of the Staffordshire History Centre project, we’ll be working closely with communities to diversify our archive and museum collections and create new content for the History Centre when it opens later this year.
“The project and our new history centre are being funded by the Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players and we’re extremely grateful for the funding.”