Conservation Update Autumn 2019

We have successfully delivered our project Out of the Archive Hold, which was funded by the National Archives. During the project we were able to fully catalogue almost 400 boxes of archive material, which are now available to search via the National Archives Discovery website. Sadly, this also means we’ve said goodbye to our project archivist Ashleigh Fowler, who left us in September. The final blog post of the project was written by our volunteers and can be found here.

Our Collections Review project has begun looking at the objects in our reserve collections. This project aims to collect new and existing information on the objects in our stores and review whether we are still the right place for them. It may be that something which does not fit in with our vision, could become the jewel in the crown of another organisation. We’ve recently recruited a team of research volunteers to assist with the project; we expect the review to last around 3 years, so please keep an eye out for other volunteer opportunities.

Work is continuing behind the scenes to transform Hangar 16M into a conservation workspace. The work should be completed in 2020, allowing us to show our visitors more of the hard work which goes into our conservation program. The work being carried out to the Bolingbroke is continuing well and by the time we move into 16M, it should be possible to reunite many of the aircraft sections.