Our Place is the place to go for networking with cultural sector practitioners.
In 2006, English Heritage and the National Trust ran a conference called Your Place or Mine? Engaging New Audiences with Heritage. The 350-plus attendees, including policymakers and practitioners from around the UK, were really keen for more opportunities to share good practice and ideas.
But networking opportunities like that in the cultural sector don’t come along every day – in fact, working in outreach and community can be a lonely job if you’re the only person in your institution with this remit.
The answer? English Heritage has launched Our Place, an online networking site for sector professionals.
“Our Place is a groundbreaking networking site and the first of its type in the country,” said Miriam Levin, Head of Outreach for English Heritage. “It’s the Facebook for the cultural sector. It will help bring together the wealth of talent and experience that exists in the field and channel it into providing the very best national resource for those working with socially excluded communities.”
Launched on December 12 2007, the site will allow those who work in education, community engagement, access and social inclusion across the heritage, libraries, museums, arts and community sectors to network with their peers and pick up ideas from projects happening around the country. It will be a place for everything from news and resources to links and discussion groups.
You can log on to Our Place at www.english-heritage.org.uk/ourplacenetwork.
The site has several features. You can set up a profile and share information and projects and, as the community grows, a database of searchable members and projects will build up.
You can start and participate in topic specific interest groups (discussion forums), and find useful links and documents in the resources section. News and events can be publicised and you can find, offer or look for services on the noticeboard.
Find out more about the Your Place or Mine? conference at www.yourplaceormine.org.uk.
