The History Detectives App

This project is being delivered as part of the Hinterlands Arts Programme with support from The Enfield Society, RSA Trust, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Arts Council England.

Sound and vision

Over the past six months, 20 young people aged between 11 and 14 from Enact Youth Club and Orchardside School have visited key heritage sites and museums including Wright's Flour Mill in Ponders End, the site of the former Royal Small Arms Factory in Enfield and the Beam Engine Museum in Tottenham.

Through these visits, they have collected sounds and images from each of these sites and reimagined these through art, animation and digital media workshops. They have developed their story-telling and oral history skills through training sessions led by oral historian Laura Owen, and collected living memories from older members of their local community and people who have worked in industries featured in the app.

New skills and new bonds

Both Enact Community and Orchardside School felt that History Detectives participants could be creative, try something new, learn new skills and learn about the history of their local areas.

The young people developed skills including interviewing skills, questioning skills and how to engage and work together in a group. They also developed creative skills, including sound design, stop-frame animation, scale drawing and painting.

The intergenerational nature of the programme helped build relationships between younger and older members of the community.

Accessing the app

The app is freely available and is designed to be used during visits to the canal and heritage sites featured, as well as being used remotely.

To download the app, use your camera phone to scan the QR code below: