SCHOOLCHILDREN and older people living in the Newburn community are taking on the challenge of transforming memories and dusty archives into an online community resource.

Dating back more than 128 years, Newburn Manor Primary School off Millfield Lane boasts being the oldest operating school in Newcastle.

Thanks to National Lottery Players, this February children at the school will team up with artists from creative ageing charity Equal Arts and nearby care settings to capture stories, memories and artefacts highlighting how the school has changed over the decades.

Boxes of pupil registers and headteachers’ logs from 1905 onwards, plus interviews with older people living at Lindisfarne and Denecroft Care Home, will all contribute to the online archive being created by the school.

Claire Gill, Deputy Head Teacher, said: “Our collections will be used to stimulate creative sessions with artists from Equal Arts to bring to life memories people have of the school.

We can’t wait to learn alongside residents at the care homes, to share experiences and work together on a project that will create a greater understanding of one another.”

Working with professional artists, every child at the school will contribute to a largescale ceramic wall mural which will be installed by the main entrance for all to see.

Our associate Poppy Crawshaw, who is helping support the project, said: “There is a real desire from the school to create an interesting and creative digital resource inspired by the whole community which will last for years to come.

“What’s fantastic is that pupils taking part will also take part in dementia-friendly training and learn how to explore memories with older people living with dementia using creative techniques. This truly is a project by and for the whole Newburn community.”

With heritage workshops for the community throughout the year, visits to museums and talks with heritage experts from across the county there are also plenty of volunteering opportunities for those interested in getting involved.

The project, entitled Built to Last, has been made possible with funding of £10,000 from The National Lottery through The Heritage Lottery Fund.