Museums Change Lives Winner!
We’re thrilled that our ‘Literature and Trauma’ project has won its category in the Museums Association’s UK-wide Museums Change Lives awards!
The project is based around a series of creative writing workshops for refugees and asylum seekers, led by the brilliant Cameroonian writer Eric Ngalle Charles, who is now resident in Wales. Eric’s personal experience of displacement and asylum is crucial in providing a safe space for participants to express themselves.
Eric said:
‘It feels amazing to have won this award. Our workshops on literature and trauma and how the former can be used to overcome the latter is about giving a voice. Helping people to get to that place where they can own their stories and speak for themselves. I am immensely grateful and long may our work continue.’
During the ‘Literature and Trauma’ sessions, people tell their unique stories through poetry and prose. Holding sessions in our Learning Space ensures provision of play facilities for any children, allowing their guardians to focus, while free bus tickets removed the barrier of travel costs. The resulting work has featured in cultural events, local media, and been read on BBC radio.
The workshops enable attendees to feel part of the wider community, to access cultural venues and orientate themselves in a new city. Our Museums Association-supported Exhibition has become a focal point and safe space for a committed and gifted group from this often neglected community.
The annual Museums Change Lives awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of museums and individuals that have made an impact on the lives of their audiences and communities.
This post is also available in: Welsh
