Cornwall Heritage Awards - Core Values Part Two

The core values of sustainability and inclusivity have been embedded into the 2022 Cornwall Heritage Awards; and not just in the award categories themselves. These values have been at the centre of every step of the planning process, and this blog post will explore and explain the decisions we have made.

 

Venue

This year, we are hosting the Cornwall Heritage Awards at the Royal Cornwall Showground. Located near Wadebridge, Royal Cornwall Showground is one of the largest venues in Cornwall, and we are hosting the awards at their Pavillion Centre, a purpose-built events centre. The Pavillion Centre is fully accessible, has plenty of parking and is easy to find from the rest of Cornwall. Attendees can also view a fully interactive 3D tour of the venue before visiting to familiarise themselves if they want to, and the details for that tour and the rest of the venue can be found here: Royal Cornwall Pavilion Centre

 

Event

Accessibility is important to us: we understand many people have reservations about attending large events during the pandemic and that some people may not have the time and capability to travel to Wadebridge. To offer attendees an alternative to travelling to the event, we will be live streaming the event, and hosting a Zoom call for those shortlisted, so they can accept any possible wins. Both the live stream and the Zoom call will have live captioning and we are happy to speak to anyone who has any other access needs. We want to ensure everyone is able to access the awards, and that everyone feels welcomed.

 

Object of the Year

Our commitment to inclusion goes beyond accessibility at the event and can be seen in our Object of the Year category. This year, the theme for the category is Untold Stories, drawing public attention to objects in our museum collections that tell previously untold stories, or stories that need retelling from a unique perspective. This award is an opportunity to give those overlooked and marginalised stories a voice.

It is important for everyone to feel represented when visiting a museum, and the stories highlighted in this category demonstrate the diverse and varied history of Cornwall. The five nominated objects tell the story of many different types of people, from women in the early 1800s to a Cornish Quaker, marginalised for his religious views.

This category is the only one decided by public vote, and voting closes in January. Voting is easy and can be done by anyone, inside and outside of Cornwall; the information for the nominations and details on how to vote can be found here: Cornwall Heritage Awards 2022 Object of the Year – Cornwall Museums Partnership

 

Inclusivity is a vital part of the awards, and we are still working towards making the awards the best they can be. We welcome comments and conversation at this email address: eilish@cornwallmuseumspartnership.org.uk where Heritage Awards Coordinator Eilish is happy to answer any queries and take suggestions.

The awards will be held on Wednesday 9 February and we are looking forward to celebrating Cornish heritage!

You can read more about our core values for the awards here: Cornwall Heritage Awards – Core Values – Cornwall Museums Partnership

 

– Eilish Calnan, Heritage Awards Coordinator