Young Roots
Chesterton Vision - a classroom with a view, was a project developed by young people who wanted to commemorate the building and the wider heritage of this coal-mining village near Newcastle-under-Lyme.
The young participants, with guidance from Staffordshire’s Youth Services and key project partner Staffordshire Archive Services, interviewed older Chesterton residents, some of whom had attended the school and worked down the mines. A visit to Staffordshire Archives helped them to understand the importance and methodology behind archiving, and how to properly preserve collected material. A trip down a coalmine, and creating a blog and presentation about the project, gave them further valuable practical and technical skills and an appreciation of their local history.
