image for illustration: IHBC East Midlands Branch
Europa Nostra, the National Trust and INTO – the International National Trusts Organisation will organise the first edition of the Inclusive European Heritage Residencies, from 14-20 June 2025, with applications closing 14 April.
Europa Nostra writes:
… on the edge of the Peak District, Derbyshire, United Kingdom… 10 heritage stakeholders will be selected to come together and discuss heritage best practices, drawing upon the National Trust’s new 10-year Strategy and Hardwick Hall’s response through its new Whole Estate Plan (WEP) process.
…Participants will explore the twin roles of heritage places in enriching people’s lives and restoring thriving natural environments. Based on an exploration of the National Trust (for England, Wales and Northern Ireland)’s brand-new strategy, ‘People and Nature Thriving’, we will use a real property in central England as a case study to explore how heritage professionals and places across Europe can ‘Restore Nature’, ‘End Unequal Access’, and ‘Inspire Millions’.
Hardwick Hall is a spectacular Elizabethan house filled with rich furnishings and tapestries and was once home to a formidable Elizabethan woman, ‘Bess of Hardwick’. Hardwick provides a physical and contextual backdrop to a week of discussions, learning, and debating about how to care for, present, and tell stories about cultural sites. The 2000-acre estate will provide a case study for exploring the role of historic places in supporting nature to recover and people to thrive. This programme aims to provide a comprehensive and immersive experience, fostering knowledge exchange, active learning, and meaningful dialogue among participants. By focusing on Hardwick’s Whole Estate Plan the Residency will also contribute to the ongoing efforts to elevate Hardwick Hall’s impact and significance. Throughout the week, delegates will focus on a ‘live brief’, contributing their ideas and expertise to Hardwick’s plans for the future. These proposals will be presented to key Hardwick personnel and the rest of the group at the end of the week for potential inclusion in the Hardwick Whole Estate Plan.
The Inclusive European Heritage Residency 2025 is organised in the frame of the network project Europa Nostra Heritage Agora (2025-2028), co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. It builds on the success of the European Heritage Youth Residencies co-organised by Europa Nostra in 2023 and 2024.
The Inclusive European Heritage Residencies are an opportunity for heritage professionals and stakeholders to experience first-hand how heritage policies and projects are implemented in practice. This immersive programme is designed to support participants in gaining practical insights into heritage conservation, fostering collaborative solutions, and advancing knowledge sharing and intergenerational dialogue about heritage across Europe. The peer-learning methodology of the programme is designed to stimulate interaction, collaborative learning, and solution-building in a supportive expert environment. By focusing on Hardwick’s Whole Estate Plan, the Residency 2025 will also contribute to the ongoing efforts to enhance the
significance and impact of this iconic site.
The key learning objectives of the Inclusive European Heritage Residency 2025 include:
? To gain a greater understanding of heritage significance and community engagement (using
Hardwick Hall’s model as a vehicle for learning);
? To gain confidence in engaging diverse and under-served audiences through effective storytelling
and engagement techniques;
? To develop a wider understanding and appreciation of heritage conservation skills and
maintenance;
? To broaden perspectives and understanding of heritage contexts (through participation in a diverse
cohort and intergenerational dialogue);
? To explore how the heritage sector can enable people to connect to heritage through cultural
landscapes, thriving natural habitats, and access to the outdoors; and
? To identify your own current organisational and professional challenges and develop action
oriented plans to address these.
Participants will have the opportunity to present their work and experience in heritage site management. This includes sharing successful local policies and projects, as well as top tips, pitfalls, and learnings. The residency will provide useful information and ideas for improving or initiating the participants’ local projects or ideas on how they might transfer some of the presented practices to their localities.
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The programme will be held from 15 to 19 June 2025 (arrival on 14 June, departure on 20 June).
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The programme is designed for heritage students, professionals, site managers, and stakeholders. We welcome applicants from a diverse range of expertise, backgrounds and experience. Applicants from all ages, races, faiths, genders, sexual orientations, and with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
Adaptations to the programmes will be made wherever possible to ensure it is accessible according to the participant’s needs.
The working language will be English.
The programme will cover the participants’ accommodation for six nights, and all breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and local travel. Participants will be hosted in Hardwick’s own and nearby Holiday Cottages in shared or individual rooms. Participants are kindly asked to arrange and pay for their own travel expenses, and medical insurance.
