Settle Stories

Last updated

Settle Stories
Founded2010 by Sita Brand
Registration no.1141649
Focus Storytelling, Oral history
Location
Coordinates 54°04′07″N2°16′35″W / 54.068670°N 2.276310°W / 54.068670; -2.276310
Area served
Yorkshire
Website www.settlestories.org.uk

Settle Stories is a registered charity and company founded in 2011 by Sita Brand, following the running of the Settle Storytelling Festival in 2010. The charity seeks to promote storytelling for individuals, communities and organisations.

Contents

History

In 2010, Sita Brand, a performance storyteller, [1] theatre director, writer, and producer, established ran the first Settle Storytelling Festival [2] in Settle, a small market town in North Yorkshire. [3] The aims of the festival were [ citation needed ]:

  1. To increase access to traditional and modern forms of storytelling.
  2. To improve the storytelling skills of users.
  3. To increase the availability of, access to, and diversity of stories and storytelling.

At the core of the initiative was a belief by Brand in the power of storytelling to help people learn and communicate universal truths[ citation needed ]. Brand believes that stories ignite the imagination in ways that help people to listen, learn, make emotional connections with ideas and effectively communicate with others.[ citation needed ] She also saw the festival as a way of contributing to the economic development of the market town.[ citation needed ]

Funding was obtained from the Arts Council England, with additional contributions from Craven District Council, Settle Town Council[ citation needed ]. The first Settle Storytelling Festival was successfully launched in 2010, involving professional storytellers, musicians and other artists. Over 500 people attended, with a similar number of local children taking part in schools-based workshops.[ citation needed ]

Following the success of the 2010 festival,[ citation needed ] Settle Stories became a registered charity (registered charity no.1141649). [4] Subsequent festivals in each of the following years saw a steady increase in visitors, with over 1,000 attending the 2013 event.[ citation needed ] The festival has since grown to become the largest storytelling festival in the north of England[ citation needed ] with over 70 events in 2018. [5]

In June 2011, Settle Stories established the W R Mitchell Archive, which is a unique collection of audio and visual recordings of life in the North West of England, particularly the Yorkshire Dales.[ citation needed ] The charity is now in the process of digitising the material and making it available as a resource for learning (see below)[ citation needed ].

In 2018, Settle Stories established The Joinery, a venue and creative space for users to meet, create and share arts work,[ citation needed ]

The company is funded by Arts Council, Heritage Lottery Fund, Settle Town Council, Trusts and Foundations, commercial sponsors and individuals.

The company continues to innovate and has developed a number of digital projects including a live streamed events. [6] and Interactive Fiction. [7] In 2019 the company created the world's first Listening Gallery [8] in a BT heritage phone box. [9]

In 2019 they worked with Shanthamani Muddaiah to create a new work Life in our Hands. [10] [11]

W R Mitchell Archive

The W R Mitchell Archive is a collection of oral history recordings, photographs and other materials collected by W. R. Mitchell over a 60-year period to record the history of Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lancashire. [12]

Mitchell (Bill) (1928 - 2015) was a journalist, historian, and author of over 100 books and articles on the Yorkshire Dales. He joined The Dalesman magazine in 1948 and was its editor from 1968–88. From the 1980s onward, Bill toured the region recording on cassette tape the memories of local people on a wide range of topics, but particularly the everyday experiences of people, as remembered and told by Dales people in their own words and dialects. In 1996, in recognition of his work, he was awarded the MBE and was made an honorary Doctor of Letters by the University of Bradford.

By 2010, Dr Mitchell had amassed a collection of over 300 audio tapes, with an accompanying collection of photographs and some video footage, of his interviewees.

In January 2012, Settle Stories received a £50,000 Heritage Lottery Fund Grant for a pilot project to digitise a selection of cassette tapes and make the recordings available online.

The archive continues with the support of volunteers. [13]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Yorkshire</span> County of England

North Yorkshire is a ceremonial county in the North of England. It is mostly located in the Yorkshire and Humber region, but the area around the Tees Valley is in the North East. The largest county of England by land area, it measures 2,483 square miles (6,430 km2) and has a population of 1,158,816 (2021). The largest county of England by land area, The county town is Northallerton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skipton</span> Town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

Skipton is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal to the south of the Yorkshire Dales. It is situated 27 miles (43 km) north-west of Leeds and 38 miles (61 km) west of York. At the 2011 Census, the population was 14,623.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craven District</span> Local authority area of North Yorkshire, England

Craven is a local government district of North Yorkshire, England centred on the market town of Skipton. In 1974, Craven District was formed as the merger of Skipton urban district, Settle Rural District and most of Skipton Rural District, all in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The population of the Local Authority area at the 2011 Census was 55,409. It comprises the upper reaches of Airedale, Wharfedale, Ribblesdale, and includes most of the Aire Gap and Craven Basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Settle, North Yorkshire</span> Market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

Settle is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is served by Settle railway station located near the town centre, and Giggleswick railway station which is a mile away. It is 29 miles (47 km) from Leeds Bradford Airport. The main road through Settle is the B6480, which links to the A65, connecting Settle to Leeds, Ilkley, Skipton and Kendal. The town had a population of 2,421 in the 2001 Census, increasing to 2,564 at the 2011 Census.

Malham is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Before 20th century boundary changes, the village was part of the Settle Rural District, in the historic West Riding of Yorkshire. In the Domesday Book, the name is given as Malgun, meaning "settlement by the gravelly places". In 2001 the parish had a population of approximately 150. Malham parish increased in size geographically and so at the 2011 Census had a population of 238.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ingleton, North Yorkshire</span> Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hellifield</span> Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

Hellifield is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the village was once an important railway junction on the Settle-Carlisle Railway between the Midland Railway and the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, but Hellifield railway station is now a shadow of its former glory. It is situated on the A65, between Skipton and Settle. Hellifield had a population of 1,060 residents at the 2001 census, increasing to 1,426 at the 2011 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gargrave</span> Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

Gargrave is a large village and civil parish in the Craven district located along the A65, 4 miles (6 km) north-west of Skipton in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated on the very edge of the Yorkshire Dales. The River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal pass through the village. It had a population of 1,764 in 2001 reducing slightly to 1,755 at the 2011 census.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taffy Thomas</span>

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The Crick Crack Club is a UK-based performance storytelling promoter, founded in 1987. It programs and tours public performances in theaters and art centers nationally, trains and mentors storytellers, undertakes research and advises on the use of oral storytelling in museums and educational settings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W. R. Mitchell</span> British writer and editor

William Reginald Mitchell was a British writer who was the editor of Dalesman magazine for twenty years and over a sixty-year period wrote over 200 books, hundreds of articles, and delivered many talks on the history and physical and natural evolution of North Britain, with particular emphasis on the Yorkshire Dales, Lancashire and the Lake District. These include biographies, social history, topography, and natural history of the regions. In the course of his career Mitchell made and collected many taped interviews with people of these regions - now housed at the Universities of Leeds and Bradford - representing a unique archive of dialect and history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Settle Victoria Hall</span> Music hall in North Yorkshire, England

Settle Victoria Hall is a Grade II listed concert hall in Kirkgate, Settle, North Yorkshire, England. It is the UK's oldest surviving music hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craven Museum & Gallery</span> Museum in Skipton, North Yorkshire, England

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Stainforth Force, is a 2.5-metre high cascade waterfall on the River Ribble at Stainforth, 3 miles (5 km) north of Settle in North Yorkshire, England. The waterfall is a popular tourist attraction in autumn when salmon are migrating up the river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stainforth Bridge</span> Packhorse bridge in North Yorkshire, England

Stainforth Bridge, is a 17th century, arched packhorse bridge over the River Ribble in Stainforth, North Yorkshire, England. The bridge was formerly on the main packhorse road between York and Lancaster, which has been superseded by later roads. It was in private ownership until the 1930s, when it was taken on by the National Trust. It is now a grade II listed structure and provides access to Stainforth Force, which is just below the bridge.

References

  1. ↑ "A working life: the storyteller | Money". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  2. ↑ "Settle Stories | The Bubble". Archived from the original on 1 October 2020.
  3. ↑ "My Yorkshire Weekend - Sita Brand". 21 September 2012.
  4. ↑ "About the register of charities".
  5. ↑ "The 7th Settle Stories Festival, Yorkshire, 6-8 April 2018".
  6. ↑ "Settle Stories celebrate World Storytelling Day with first ever live streamed event". Craven Herald. 14 March 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  7. ↑ "Down the Rabbit Hole". Settle Stories. 5 July 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  8. ↑ "Listening Gallery (Settle) - 2020 All You Need to Know Before You Go (with Photos) - Settle, England". Tripadvisor. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  9. ↑ "Settle Stories to unveil new Listening Gallery in former phone box". Craven Herald. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  10. ↑ "Life stories told through hand sculptures". Craven Herald. 11 September 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  11. ↑ "Life in Our Hands - Yorkshire Dales National Park : Yorkshire Dales National Park". Yorkshiredales.org.uk. 24 September 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  12. ↑ Community Archivesand Heritage Group (10 February 2020). "W.R. Mitchell Archive | New contributions | Community Archives and Heritage Group". Communityarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  13. ↑ "Yorkshire Dales: Priceless look at rural life in a bygone age". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
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