North-east social care charity VSA has been awarded £160,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to deliver a project which will bring to life the heritage of social care in Aberdeen.
The charity, which marks its 150th
anniversary in 2020, will be gathering stories to showcase the history of social care in Aberdeen since 1870 and would like families from across the North-east to share how VSA may have helped family members past or present.
The project will look to share these stories through various platforms throughout the next couple of years, including public art, crafting, postcards, booklets of stories, school toolkits, and the charity also hopes to hold an exhibition showcasing their heritage journey.
The charity has already opened its archives and archivist, Wendy Smithers has been collating stories from the vast 150-year history of VSA.
One story which has been uncovered is from 1904, when the Bannermill textile factory, unfortunately, came into difficult economic conditions and had to close its doors. Over 400 Aberdonians, mostly women and girls were suddenly faced with no income. The charity then known as the Association for Improving the Condition of the Poor, set up rooms in Gallowgate to support people by retraining, providing meals, and help them find other jobs while also providing them with somewhere to sleep if they needed it.
Kenneth Simpson, chief executive of VSA, said: “VSA has been caring for the people of Aberdeen for 150 years and supported generations of your families through two world wars, the Spanish Influenza pandemic, and the Aberdeen Typhoid outbreak. We are delighted to have been awarded this grant to help us discover stories like the Bannermill which may have otherwise been lost.”
“We are looking forward to the development of this project and working with people across Aberdeen to help us bring to life the heritage of social care in the north-east, and would like to thank The National Lottery Heritage Fund for this opportunity.”
Caroline Clark, director scotland of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Heritage is so much more than castles and museums. Memories, stories and reminiscences are an important way of learning about our past and sharing it with future generations. Thanks to players of The National Lottery, the VSA will be able to collect and record this shared history before its slips out of human memory.”
The charity welcomes members of the public to get involved by sharing their story of how VSA has supported them by contacting heritage@vsa.org.uk or calling 01224 212021.