CORONATION STREET STAR HELPS LAUNCH MAJOR ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME ACROSS SCHOOLS

 

CORONATION STREET STAR HELPS LAUNCH

MAJOR ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME ACROSS SCHOOLS

IN BIRMINGHAM HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION MADE BY THOSE WHO SETTLED IN THE CITY FROM THE COMMONWEALTH

 

Sampad South Asian Arts & Heritage, working in partnership with Birmingham Archives, the University of Birmingham and Historic England has launched an extensive citywide engagement programme for schools highlighting the important contribution made by those who settled in Birmingham from the Commonwealth. Twenty school partners across the city will host and explore a touring exhibition and classroom resources involving over 1200 students aged from 7-16.

 

The engagement programme is part of Sampad’s  ‘FROM CITY OF EMPIRE TO CITY OF DIVERSITY: A VISUAL JOURNEY’ which will culminate in a major exhibition at the Library of Birmingham in March 2022 ahead of the Commonwealth Games. The exhibition is currently being created by Sampad from The Dyche Collection one of the most important photographic collections within Birmingham Archives featuring over 10,000 photographs documenting post-1945 migration.

Lord Mayor of Birmingham Councillor Muhammad Afzal with 
Coronation Street star and Project Champion Lorna Laidlaw
Phtogtaph credit Sampad

 

The launch of the engagement programme at Selly Park Girls School in Stirchley was attended by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham Councillor Muhammad Afzal and Coronation Street star and Project Champion Lorna Laidlaw.

 

Speaking about the programme Birmingham born Lorna commented, “From City of Empire to City of Diversity is a wonderful project, which I am proud to be part of. It connects our young people with the lives and experiences of our elders, which is essential in understanding the story of Birmingham. The Dyche photographs remind us that we are indebted to those people from the Commonwealth who settled here. Exploring our migration history can enable our young people to be proud of who they are and proud to be a Brummie. How fantastic is that?”

 

This engagement programme features an informative and educational exhibition of rarely seen photographs from The Dyche collection which will tour into schools running alongside an extensive resources pack for teachers to enable students to understand the stories behind the photographs.

 

Black and Asian histories are a vital part of England’s story and the project aims to help students learn about their own heritage, how and why people migrated, understand different cultures and religions but mostly to feel proud to be part of the rich history of Birmingham.

 

Speaking at the launch, Robert Turner, Assistant Headteacher at Selly Park Girls School said “In response to the fabulous training provided by the Sampad team we’ve been able to introduce pupils to this wonderful collection of photographs.

We found that all of the pupils who have seen the exhibition have connected in their own personal way and their outcomes clearly demonstrate the passion that has helped them produce their own artwork. It gives me great joy to know that pupils are going home and speaking to their parents' grandparents and great-grandparents and finding out about the stories that may have been lost had they not seen the exhibition.”

The Dyche Collection features photographs by self-taught photographer Ernest Dyche and his son Malcolm who had two studios in the city producing individual, group, family and wedding portraits. In the 1950s the portrait work shifted its focus to the first wave of migrants arriving in Birmingham from Africa, the Caribbean and Indian sub-continent.  For over 25 years, many visitors to his main studio would have portraits made to send back to friends and family in their home countries – inadvertently capturing the story of Commonwealth migration and recording an important phase in Birmingham’s history.

 

The collection came into the possession of Birmingham Archives once the Studio and business closed-down in the 1980s. Archivists were given permission by Ernest Dyche's stepson, Malcolm, who owned the business when it was shut down, to go to the studio premises, box up and collect all the materials that were held there; this even included props from the studio and camera equipment.

 

The work being done to catalogue the collection will not only allow access to the collection, but will also highlight the importance of diversity in archives, the history of photography and the history of Birmingham as a city.

 

Work produced by some of the students participating in the project will be included in the main exhibition at the Library of Birmingham in March 2022.

 

‘FROM CITY OF EMPIRE TO CITY OF DIVERSITY: A VISUAL JOURNEY’ is in partnership with Birmingham Archives, Library of Birmingham and University of Birmingham. Resources for schools designed in partnership with Historic England.  The project is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to coincide with the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham.