COUNTY chiefs are celebrating after an Evesham-based project picked up a pair of prizes at this year’s Archaeological Achievement Awards.
Worcestershire’s County Council’s Archive and Archaeology Service’s Roots in Time project won the Archaeology and Sustainability Award and the Outstanding Achievement Award.
The archaeology and art project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England, is based around a new public green space and woodland at New Farm Nature Reserve, just north of Evesham.
The Archaeological Achievement Awards, run by the Council for British Archaeology, are a showcase of the best archaeology across the British isles.
Thanks to National Lottery players, £95,830 of funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and £29,760 from Arts Council England were granted to enable a community excavation of Romano-British and late prehistoric archaeology in summer 2022, followed by onsite interpretation co-created with local communities. The onsite interpretation panels, sitting place sculpture and audio-trail explore the ecology and heritage of the site, and human interaction with the landscape over millennia.
They have been created by Ourside Youth Centre, Evesham and District Meeting Centre and the Freedom Day Centre, working with Spare Room Arts and writer Jean Atkin.
Coun Marcus Hart, cabinet member for Communities, said:
“Congratulations to The Roots in Time team, the project is a shining example of how archaeology can be used to not only promote our understanding of the past but also to create a more sustainable future.
“By incorporating archaeology into the design of New Farm Nature Reserve, Worcestershire County Council has demonstrated its commitment to preserving both our heritage and our environment.”
The site’s design incorporated a range of habitats, including wildflower meadows, wetland, and diverse native woodland, alongside preserving buried archaeological deposits.
