Learning Links / Life Skills and LLDD students (learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities) from Harrow College have been invited by Headstone Manor Museum to take part in a special project, bringing together both history and creativity.
Having worked with the museum before, students were invited back to take part in a project which is focussed on Whitefriars Glass. In the mid 1800’s Whitefriars Glass were one of the world leaders in glass production and stain glass windows. The Whitefriars factory, which later moved to Wealdstone, closed in the 1980's. Some of the students involved in the project had relatives who worked there. The site is also now the site of the Harrow College Whitefriars Training Centre, used by students pursuing construction and engineering related careers.
The project with Harrow College is taking place over the academic year. Staff from the museum regularly visit the college to give entertaining talks upon which the students then create artwork. The project consists of making stained glass windows and scenes from the factories. The newly created pieces of work are then presented to the museum who in time will animate the artwork, culminating in a film later in the year. The filmmaker, commissioned by the museum, has visited Harrow College to film some of the talks and film students at work. The film is an animated piece about the history of Whitefriars.
Speaking about the project, Sarah Alison Pike, Supported Learning Lecturer for Entry and LLDD at Harrow College said “It's a really great project for us to take part in and the students are enjoying it and making some fantastic work. The museum staff love coming to see our students and deliver the talks”.
The completed artwork will be exhibited in the museum and the film shared on the museum website and Facebook pages. Excitingly, there has already been some interest expressed in the project by other museums that have Whitefriars glass pieces in their collection. The glassware is very desirable and sought after.
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