Community » Local Projects » Run Your Own Local Project

Run Your Own Local Project

Historypin is about bringing people together all over the world, from across families, communities and different generations, to see and share their history in a new way.

Local Historypin projects are the perfect way to do this and we support people all over the world to run activities and events in their neighbourhoods.

Top tips for running your own local project

Tip 1: Think local

Historypin is a tool that can be used in all sorts of different places and communities. Each school, group of students, street, neighbourhood, or community organisation will have their own reason for wanting to run a local project.

Ten things Historypin can help you ...

• Get younger and older people talking
• Help an older person remember
• Encourage people to find out where they’ve come from
• Make a younger person feel valued
• Change the way older people and younger people see each other
• Build lasting relationships in your neighbourhood
• Encourage people to get online
• Create a sense of pride in your local area
• Share stories and capture a moment in time

Have a look at how Billericay School are using Historypin

Tip 2 No project is too large or too small

Historypin is great for projects of all sizes. Here are some ideas to get you started.

5 ways to use Historypin ...

• Use Historypin to liven up a coffee morning.
• Encourage your students to arrange a Historypin afternoon for their families, neighbours or local care home.
• Have a Historypin stall at a street party or neighbourhood event.
• Open up your computer room to local residents and organise a weekly drop-in where they can come and pin their history.
• Think of an important an area of your neighbourhood that has gone through a lot of change and set up a Historypin group to share those memories.

Have a look at how Magic Me are using Historypin to see how things have changed in London

Need some help getting started?

• Our FAQs will help you get started straight away, and don’t forget to keep an eye on our twitter feed and blog for more ideas, to see new content and for new resources.
• Or if you want to chat to someone about running your own Historypin local project, contact our Community Manager, Natasha on natasha.armstrong@wearewhatwedo.org.

Tip 3 Don’t do everything at once

If you are running a local project in a school or with a group, it’s nice to have a bit of time. Do some sessions to prepare your group before you invite guests to pin with you.It is important for people to know how to use Historypin, but it is also important for people to think about how they are going to share their knowledge or encourage other people to share their memories.

Have a look at how Newport Primary School prepared for their Historypin teaparty with great success.

Tip 4 Not everything has to be done online

The nice thing about Historypin local projects is that you can design activities to fit in with what you have. If you are in a school or community centre that has a scanner and computers hooked up to the internet, then you have everything you need.

But if you don’t have all that equipment, don’t worry. Historypin is also about the stories and relationships which develop while sharing history. Get people to talk and share their memories by simply sitting next to each other and looking at a photo. If you want something to capture their stories, you can use ‘Gathering information to tell the story behind a photo’ and ‘Teachers’ notes’. Tip 5 gives you some ideas of how to pin if you don’t have all the equipment you need.

Tip 5 Where you can go to pin

If you don’t have all the equipment you need, here are some ideas about what to do ...

• Ask your local library or community centre if you can run a session there
• Ask your local school if you can use their computer suite after school or at the weekend
• Put someone in charge of collecting photos and stories to scan in another room or office

And finally, we meant it when we said no project is too large ...

Historypin can be used to unite a whole town or neighbourhood in creating a diverse communal history of time, place and people. Have a look at how groups across Reading have been working with Historypin to tell the history of their whole town.

Do you want to bring your community together or preserve the heritage of your neighbourhood? Why don’t you have a look at what funding is available in your area.

If you are interested in running a major project in your community based on the Historypin model, contact nickstanhope@wearewhatwedo.org for advice or to partner on a bid.

We are launching Historypin in New York on 11th July so keep an eye on this page to hear more about our US projects and other projects across the world.