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Hackney

Nationally, Hackney suffered some of the most sustained bomb damage of World War Two. Subsequently, the borough witnessed some of the most daring experiments in Post-War planning. Central government policies, professional ambitions, local initiatives and personalities combined to create a remarkably varied architecture, shaping communities and dividing opinion, then and now.

 

Uncovering new educational resources

Yet much information on this remains untapped: rich archive sources are under-used; personal narratives need to be recorded and shared; and the Post-War built environment itself is often misread and undervalued. Our project aimed to ensure that people, archives and places are better connected, and that these are directly experienced in the classroom.

 

New partnerships

The project was founded on the close collaboration between four partners|: the RIBA British Architectural Library; Hackney Archives; The Building Exploratory; and the Bridge Academy. Together, the partners offer a wealth of archival collections, outreach and teaching and learning experience. This partnership was generally funded as part of the Their Past Your Future| initiative, funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The project also received further funding for an interactive online element, facilitated by Radiowaves|.

 

Our focus

We focused on one particular area of Hackney, around Mapledene Road. This had a particularly interesting history during and after the War, and what’s more some surprising finds in the archives. Students have been putting their new-found knowledge Online|!