Hefted! Upland Farming Heritage in the Cheviots

We are delighted to be bringing this project, from the Cheviots, to Coquetdale.
More details about our event will be posted on here, as we develop the programme.
Read below about the Project.

The project builds on the highly successful 'Inspiring Rural Heritage' (IRIS) which explored the contribution of local farmers in sustaining their rural upland environment in the UK, Italy, Spain, France and Montenegro. There we saw for ourselves the threat of depopulation, the loss of traditional skills and land-use change driven by the climate emergency and 'natural capital' approaches to land management..

Hill-farmers from the Cheviot Hills in Northumberland were at the heart of the UK case study for IRIS. Over 19 hours of in-person interviews were recorded with shepherds, farmers, land managers and communities. This was complemented by fresh historical and archaeological research which investigated the deeper past to the landscape we see today. Taken together, this evidence has shed light on the enormous range of local expertise and traditions, and fostered new collaborative opportunities for the future.

Cheviots: Spreading the Word takes our results a step further by embedding our new understanding in local communities, particularly schools, community groups for older adults, and visitors to the Northumberland National Park. Through our work, we want to safeguard living heritage without freezing or fixing it, to ensure that it remains vital and continues to evolve.