FAQs
How large is your collection of artefacts?
- Both collections are massive. Workshop venues ideally should be school hall, year area or other large space, able to accommodate seating ‘in the round’ for participants with table ‘islands’ for collections in the perimeter
What kind of experience do you have?
- In practice much of my work has been in secondary schools where a complete year cohort of students have the experience in 4 or 5 approximately 1 hour workshops
How many students can participate in your workshops?
- Maximum numbers per workshop for WWI c50 and for WWII c60; optimum numbers c30-40
How long are your workshops?
- The workshops are adaptable according to time available but 50 minutes would be the absolute minimum – the longer the better
Are your firearms safe?
- All firearms are deactivated and deactivation certificates are held for each weapon
What about risk assessments?
- Comprehensive risk assessments are available for both workshops. No participant has experienced injury since I started running the workshops in 1999
What about insurance?
- Public Liability Insurance is held
How much time would you need to set up?
- An hour’s previous setting up time is needed, together with willing student assistants please! (Similar time and help needed at the end of the workshop.)
Do you run any other workshops?
- I have more specialist ‘hands-on’ ephemera workshops as follows:
- Tokens and the Industrial Revolution
- German history through banknotes 1914-1945
- Russian history 1870-1918: the secrets of Bearer Bonds
Do you ever suffer loss or damage to your collection?
- "You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs" .... I think these experiences offer important PSHE opportunities too – about trust extended to students by a visitor. Pilferage, despite obvious opportunity, has been minimal; the overwhelming majority of young people in my experience respond very positively to the respect extended to them.