Skip to main content

Posted 28 March 2022

Shared History Finale

Shared History Fund

On the evening of Thursday 24th March, RCN celebrated the conclusion of our year long programme called “100 Years of Change – Rural Shared History Programme”. RCN received an investment of £35,000 for the new project working across rural NI. The project was part of the Shared History Fund, which The National Lottery Heritage Fund is delivering on behalf of the Northern Ireland Office, to help groups mark the centenary of Northern Ireland in a thoughtful, inclusive and engaging way.

Fifty attendees at the programme’s finale celebration heard how 300+ people from across Northern Ireland benefitted from the many activities of the project, including the delivery of a community relations capacity building programme, two courses on the Partition of Ireland, two courses on the state of Northern Ireland, four small grant projects involving multiple schools in NI and across the border, six online history lectures, a course on living with the legacies of imperialism,  a lecture on culture and heritage, the development of a new interactive website of 32 rural stories, an animation piece showcasing rural life in NI over the last 100 years, and a play about the history of Sion Mills Cricket Club.

96.8% of project participants reported a better understanding of their own culture and heritage following their engagement with the project. With 98.4% of project participants reporting a more positive attitude towards other people’s culture and heritage following their engagement with the project.

RCN would like to thank the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the NIO and the Community Relations Council for their support in making the programme possible.

To view the “Rural Voices” website and animation, please click on the link below

Home (creativecentenaries.org)

To view the Sion Mills Cricket Club play, please click on the link below

RHA’s Shared History Film: 100 Years of Cricket in Sion Mills – Rural Housing Association | Northern Ireland

To view the "Rural Voices" website and animation