Heritage Festival starts this weekend
Published: Thursday, May 18, 2023
The Wandsworth Heritage Festival 2023 kicks off this Saturday with a poetry workshop and the unveiling of a plaque celebrating local heroes.
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The festival runs from May 20-June 11 and will exploring the theme Educating Wandsworth.
On Saturday join poets Hilaire and Joolz Sparkes who will share some of the gems they have found in the archive on the theme of women and education and will encourage you to produce your own creative responses. Book by email at heritage@gll.org.
Meanwhile Summerstown 182 will be hosting a guided walk of the area near Wimbledon Stadium, followed d by a plaque unveiling on Burtop Road Estate acknowledging ‘The Corruganza Boxmakers’ whose strike in 1908 was a key moment in the struggle for women’s rights in the workplace. Book online at corruganza.eventbrite.co.uk
On Sunday there will be a walk organised by the Battersea Society looks at sites and survivors of the area's iconic buildings. Book by email at events@batterseasociety.org.uk.
Other highlights include
- Tours of Froebel and Whitelands Colleges
- A tour of Emanuel School and its archives
- A talk about Marjory Allen and the adventure playground movement
- A talk on Victorian mentors of the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability
- A talk on Froebelian heritage in early childhood research and practice
- A walk charting the lost nursery of blooming Tooting
- An exhibition at Putney Library of archive photographs from the library service
There will also be a chance to see some of the Wandsworth Museum collection on display at the University of Roehampton and to visit the Wandsworth Prison Museum.
The festival is organised by Wandsworth Libraries & Heritage Service alongside many local groups and societies.
Cllr Kemi Akinola, cabinet member for the voluntary sector, business engagement and culture, said: “This year we have extended the Wandsworth Heritage Festival to three weeks because so many people want to be part of it.
The festival comes together each year thanks to the local groups who help preserve and celebrate Wandsworth’s history. Their willingness to share their enthusiasm, knowledge, and is crucial and we hope you will support them by attending some of the great events they have planned.”
