CASE STUDY: ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL 2008 - 2013
OVERVIEW
Rochester Cathedral is the second oldest Cathedral Foundation in the Country and the current building dates from 1087. It is often over looked as the poor cousin of is county counterpart Canterbury Cathedral, which is the seat of the highest ranking clergyman in the Church of England. Despite this, it is a building of extraordinary historical, architectural and social significance, positioned right at the crossing of the River Medway into Rochester. Standing at the great West Door you can almost tell the architectural story of England travelling down to the East End through its walls.
In 2008 following a successful grant application to the Heritage Lottery Fund, Rochester Cathedral was awarded £937,000 for a new interpretation of the building, crucial capital works, and an extensive audience development and marketing plan. It was a crucial moment in the life of this beautiful building, and provided opportunities to engage new people, and really reveal the otherwise hard to access stories hidden within its stones.
In 2012 the work continued with another injection of HLF cash, this time for significant improvements to the fabric, including wheelchair access to the crypt for the first time. Additionally a 3 year programme of outreach and audience development, interwoven with new unprecedented access to the collection was planned, centering around the ancient and priceless Textus Roffensis, the jewel in the crown of the Rochester Cathedral archive.
BACKGROUND
In 2008, Annie Lucas was appointed as Interpretation Manager at Rochester Cathedral, following the HLF grant of £937,000 for the project entitled Ancient Stones, Untold Stories. For the next two years she oversaw all visits, audience development, marketing and volunteer related work and was responsible for a number of creative solutions to the problems pertaining to engaging new audiences in a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
As a completely new, innovative and creative re-interpretation of this significant historical site, Ancient Stones Untold Stories (ASUS) was a key project in the life time of the cathedral. Never before had the building’s stories been communicated in a creative and up to date way across a very wide range of media, activity and events. These included:
In 2010, following relocation to Cornwall with her husband, Annie was re-engaged as a consultant and continued to support the cathedral, initially through the research, development and delivery of an accredited (Institute of Tourist Guiding) guide training programme, something which had only been achieved in one other cathedral prior to this work.
Upon completion of that project she took the creative lead on the research and development of the Interpretation and Exhibition Plan which formed a significant part of the second HLF grant application entitled Hidden Treasures, Fresh Expressions (HTFE).
Key strands of this second project included:
CAPITAL WORKS
STRATEGIC MILESTONES
DATA COLLECTION / MARKET RESEARCH
For both projects, consultation and market research were critical to develop a sustainable strategy which would be the foundation of a positive legacy for future generations.
The specific nature of this varied project to project, dependant on the anticipated outcomes, but included the following components:
DELIVERY
Once all research avenues had been exhausted, specific project strands were drafted for two purposes -
Many of these involved working closely with other consultants in the development stages, including but not limited to:
Communication with the cathedral community and visitors was of utmost priority during the delivery phase, especially due to the great changes being made in an historic site and the sometimes very personal relationships these groups had with the space. Everyone was kept abreast of the changes being made and why through -
EVALUATION
Each project strand had built into it a strategy for evaluation built into it. Annie was responsible for on going monitoring and evaluation of all visit related activity during ASUS which involved :
CHALLENGES
PEOPLE
The cathedral is a building which holds a strong place in the hearts and minds of those who worship and work there as well as those who have visited. People have fixed ideas and perceptions about what a cathedral is for, what it should be doing, and whether or not it is of interest to them. Change is often a scary thing and this had to be handled with care and sensitivity in order to allow people to adjust to the changes without derailing the project timeline or losing sight of overall project objectives.
Solution Extensive consultation with a wide variety of stakeholders was required throughout both projects, but specifically the volunteers who were most unsettled and affected by the changes in ASUS. Change management was absolutely key and communication sat at the heart of that. Clear channels in which to voice concerns and complaints were given, and opportunities to directly influence the project were made wherever possible which increased the buy-in and help build alliances within groups who felt unsettled. By the time HTFE took place all volunteers were on board having seen the benefits of ASUS two years perviously.
FABRIC
Working in a Scheduled Ancient Monument that is also part of the Church of England is not without its challenges! There are lengthy permissions processes to go through, which impact hugely on project timeline. Not only were we bound by our own Fabric Advisory Committee (FAC) as a cathedral we were also bound by the Cathedral Fabric Commission for England ( CFCE ) who only meet 10 times per year, and through whom all fabric interventions needed to be signed off.
Solution Any interventions to stone needed to be passed through the FAC and CFCE who wanted specific plans on location and nature of intervention. In some cases we circumnavigated this by drilling into mortar ( which is easily filled and replaced and therefore causes no permanent damage ) in installing some of the hardware for the AV installations and audio guides. For everything else keeping to the timetable was key and therefore clear deadlines were set to all consultants with regular progress checks made and fed back to the steering group.
ACCESS
There were a number of barriers to access in Rochester Cathedral, physical, economical and intellectual. Primarily when buildings in the 11th century were began, no one really considered wheelchairs, buggies, sight, hearing or learning difficulties.
Solution In ASUS the decision was taken to move the main entrance to the building from the impressive West Door to the smaller North door, which provided the only level access into the building. This was not a popular choice, but it was true to Rochester Cathedral’s commitment of ‘Welcome to All’ which harks back to its Benedictine foundations. In this way disabled visitors were not shuffled in through a side door, and all visitors received an equal welcome. Glass porches were installed to enable visitors to see in during the colder months ( closed doors are not very friendly ) and this was all part of a wider strategy to encourage people to come in, investigate and explore. Additionally a sight-impaired ‘touch tour’ was devised, and all new exhibitions had large print interpretation. A tactile bronze plate interpreting the Baptismal Fresco was also commissioned.
SUSTAINABILITY
Grants are not bottomless pits of money and all the project work needed to be able to sustain itself into the future. This is hard in a building which is committed to free entry (increasingly rare among cathedrals) and proved a challenge.
Solution All of the new interventions in both projects needed to pay for themselves long term. It was decided to charge for the audio guides but have a strategy for selling from our volunteer welcomers. Additionally new donations boxes were made and better positioned, and each event that was mounted which was unfunded had to at least cover costs. Longer term such signifiant changes to the building and the associated strategy such as opening up the library for research and education purposes, and the treasury exhibition, were made with a view to drawing in more visitors with a wider variety of interesting and engaging activity. In so doing knock on effect would be improvement in general donations and add on sales, which are an important part of how the cathedral receives its income.
RESULTS
Ancient Stones, Untold Stories officially launched 12 months after the grant was awarded, though much of the outreach had been begun before that date with a ‘soft’ launch 8 months after starting. This provided an opportunity to iron out operational issues and gave volunteers an opportunity to get used to the new hardware, entrance and welcome desks well in advance of an influx of visitors. The project lasted 3 years and came in on time and on budget. With a strategic approach to volunteer recruitment the Welcomer and Guide numbers doubled and on going training and development opportunities allowed them to feel valued and invested in, within the community. A number of key exhibitions broke some of the barriers to access by challenging what was expected within a cathedral building, most notably a collaboration with local artist Wendy Daws and the Kent Association for the Blind entitled ‘Eyes Wide Open’. Finally an annual audience development event, partnering with Medway Council Heritage Team (and the BBC on one occasion) allowed for joint marketing of Rochester as destination venue and provided free, funded activities for local families and visitors alike.
In summary, Ancient Stones, Untold Stories achieved the following:
OVERVIEW
Rochester Cathedral is the second oldest Cathedral Foundation in the Country and the current building dates from 1087. It is often over looked as the poor cousin of is county counterpart Canterbury Cathedral, which is the seat of the highest ranking clergyman in the Church of England. Despite this, it is a building of extraordinary historical, architectural and social significance, positioned right at the crossing of the River Medway into Rochester. Standing at the great West Door you can almost tell the architectural story of England travelling down to the East End through its walls.
In 2008 following a successful grant application to the Heritage Lottery Fund, Rochester Cathedral was awarded £937,000 for a new interpretation of the building, crucial capital works, and an extensive audience development and marketing plan. It was a crucial moment in the life of this beautiful building, and provided opportunities to engage new people, and really reveal the otherwise hard to access stories hidden within its stones.
In 2012 the work continued with another injection of HLF cash, this time for significant improvements to the fabric, including wheelchair access to the crypt for the first time. Additionally a 3 year programme of outreach and audience development, interwoven with new unprecedented access to the collection was planned, centering around the ancient and priceless Textus Roffensis, the jewel in the crown of the Rochester Cathedral archive.
BACKGROUND
In 2008, Annie Lucas was appointed as Interpretation Manager at Rochester Cathedral, following the HLF grant of £937,000 for the project entitled Ancient Stones, Untold Stories. For the next two years she oversaw all visits, audience development, marketing and volunteer related work and was responsible for a number of creative solutions to the problems pertaining to engaging new audiences in a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
As a completely new, innovative and creative re-interpretation of this significant historical site, Ancient Stones Untold Stories (ASUS) was a key project in the life time of the cathedral. Never before had the building’s stories been communicated in a creative and up to date way across a very wide range of media, activity and events. These included:
- New audio guides - in three tours, translated into 6 different languages, covering all aspects of the life of Rochester Cathedral: Family Guide, General Visit, and Spiritual Tour.
- Audio visual - Installations in 3 sites, projected directly on the fabric of the building, syncing with the audio-guides.
- New guide book - translated into 5 languages
- New leaflet trails - translated into 10 languages
In 2010, following relocation to Cornwall with her husband, Annie was re-engaged as a consultant and continued to support the cathedral, initially through the research, development and delivery of an accredited (Institute of Tourist Guiding) guide training programme, something which had only been achieved in one other cathedral prior to this work.
Upon completion of that project she took the creative lead on the research and development of the Interpretation and Exhibition Plan which formed a significant part of the second HLF grant application entitled Hidden Treasures, Fresh Expressions (HTFE).
Key strands of this second project included:
CAPITAL WORKS
- Library - New roof, new interior plan, additional strong-room space
- Kent Steps - Relocation of exiting chair lift and new chair lift going down to the crypt (plans for this have altered since the grant award)
- Crypt - Installation of Chair lift, reconfiguration of choir robing rooms, change in floor level for improved access, construction of a new Treasury space.
- Garth - reconfiguring of the South Door entrance with new level access and better pathway from South Door to Tea Room.
- Exhibition - Annual exhibition running for 3 years, revealing the ‘hidden treasures’ of the cathedral archive including the semi-permanent display of Textus Roffensis, the first written code of law in England and the earliest written record of Anglo Saxon which is a precursor to modern English.
- Archive - digitisation of Textus Roffensis.
- Audience Engagement - a strategic plan to engage new audiences, specifically those with disabilities and young families.
STRATEGIC MILESTONES
DATA COLLECTION / MARKET RESEARCH
For both projects, consultation and market research were critical to develop a sustainable strategy which would be the foundation of a positive legacy for future generations.
The specific nature of this varied project to project, dependant on the anticipated outcomes, but included the following components:
- Consultation - key stakeholders (staff, congregation, City of Rochester Society, Friends of Rochester Cathedral, visitors, potential local partners such as UCCA, children’s centres, and other heritage sites in the vicinity, disabled and elderly groups)
- Site visits - extensive discussions with project leads or site managers in other venues with similar projects, to discuss their experiences, plans, troubles, successes, and to ascertain the success of their work since inception.
- Archive research - study of the large collection of paper (housed in medway Council Archive) and artefacts (housed within the strong-room, Guildhall Museum, and cathedral building) to tease out and thread together potential story lines for the forthcoming exhibition.
DELIVERY
Once all research avenues had been exhausted, specific project strands were drafted for two purposes -
- on track implementation and reference
- visibility and tracking of strands for all other project team members
- Marketing
- Audience Development
- Volunteer Management
- Exhibition and Interpretation
- Monitoring/Evaluation
Many of these involved working closely with other consultants in the development stages, including but not limited to:
- Cathedral Architect
- Quantity Surveyor
- Project Manager
- Activity Planning Consultants (HTFE only)
- Access Consultant
- Project Steering Group headed up by Canon Philip Hesketh (now Dean).
Communication with the cathedral community and visitors was of utmost priority during the delivery phase, especially due to the great changes being made in an historic site and the sometimes very personal relationships these groups had with the space. Everyone was kept abreast of the changes being made and why through -
- regular updates in the newsletter
- community meetings
- a display board in the cathedral itself.
EVALUATION
Each project strand had built into it a strategy for evaluation built into it. Annie was responsible for on going monitoring and evaluation of all visit related activity during ASUS which involved :
- collection and analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data
- submission of written reports to Chapter and the HLF
CHALLENGES
PEOPLE
The cathedral is a building which holds a strong place in the hearts and minds of those who worship and work there as well as those who have visited. People have fixed ideas and perceptions about what a cathedral is for, what it should be doing, and whether or not it is of interest to them. Change is often a scary thing and this had to be handled with care and sensitivity in order to allow people to adjust to the changes without derailing the project timeline or losing sight of overall project objectives.
Solution Extensive consultation with a wide variety of stakeholders was required throughout both projects, but specifically the volunteers who were most unsettled and affected by the changes in ASUS. Change management was absolutely key and communication sat at the heart of that. Clear channels in which to voice concerns and complaints were given, and opportunities to directly influence the project were made wherever possible which increased the buy-in and help build alliances within groups who felt unsettled. By the time HTFE took place all volunteers were on board having seen the benefits of ASUS two years perviously.
FABRIC
Working in a Scheduled Ancient Monument that is also part of the Church of England is not without its challenges! There are lengthy permissions processes to go through, which impact hugely on project timeline. Not only were we bound by our own Fabric Advisory Committee (FAC) as a cathedral we were also bound by the Cathedral Fabric Commission for England ( CFCE ) who only meet 10 times per year, and through whom all fabric interventions needed to be signed off.
Solution Any interventions to stone needed to be passed through the FAC and CFCE who wanted specific plans on location and nature of intervention. In some cases we circumnavigated this by drilling into mortar ( which is easily filled and replaced and therefore causes no permanent damage ) in installing some of the hardware for the AV installations and audio guides. For everything else keeping to the timetable was key and therefore clear deadlines were set to all consultants with regular progress checks made and fed back to the steering group.
ACCESS
There were a number of barriers to access in Rochester Cathedral, physical, economical and intellectual. Primarily when buildings in the 11th century were began, no one really considered wheelchairs, buggies, sight, hearing or learning difficulties.
Solution In ASUS the decision was taken to move the main entrance to the building from the impressive West Door to the smaller North door, which provided the only level access into the building. This was not a popular choice, but it was true to Rochester Cathedral’s commitment of ‘Welcome to All’ which harks back to its Benedictine foundations. In this way disabled visitors were not shuffled in through a side door, and all visitors received an equal welcome. Glass porches were installed to enable visitors to see in during the colder months ( closed doors are not very friendly ) and this was all part of a wider strategy to encourage people to come in, investigate and explore. Additionally a sight-impaired ‘touch tour’ was devised, and all new exhibitions had large print interpretation. A tactile bronze plate interpreting the Baptismal Fresco was also commissioned.
SUSTAINABILITY
Grants are not bottomless pits of money and all the project work needed to be able to sustain itself into the future. This is hard in a building which is committed to free entry (increasingly rare among cathedrals) and proved a challenge.
Solution All of the new interventions in both projects needed to pay for themselves long term. It was decided to charge for the audio guides but have a strategy for selling from our volunteer welcomers. Additionally new donations boxes were made and better positioned, and each event that was mounted which was unfunded had to at least cover costs. Longer term such signifiant changes to the building and the associated strategy such as opening up the library for research and education purposes, and the treasury exhibition, were made with a view to drawing in more visitors with a wider variety of interesting and engaging activity. In so doing knock on effect would be improvement in general donations and add on sales, which are an important part of how the cathedral receives its income.
RESULTS
Ancient Stones, Untold Stories officially launched 12 months after the grant was awarded, though much of the outreach had been begun before that date with a ‘soft’ launch 8 months after starting. This provided an opportunity to iron out operational issues and gave volunteers an opportunity to get used to the new hardware, entrance and welcome desks well in advance of an influx of visitors. The project lasted 3 years and came in on time and on budget. With a strategic approach to volunteer recruitment the Welcomer and Guide numbers doubled and on going training and development opportunities allowed them to feel valued and invested in, within the community. A number of key exhibitions broke some of the barriers to access by challenging what was expected within a cathedral building, most notably a collaboration with local artist Wendy Daws and the Kent Association for the Blind entitled ‘Eyes Wide Open’. Finally an annual audience development event, partnering with Medway Council Heritage Team (and the BBC on one occasion) allowed for joint marketing of Rochester as destination venue and provided free, funded activities for local families and visitors alike.
In summary, Ancient Stones, Untold Stories achieved the following:
- Putting the cathedral into the forefront of people’s minds for innovative events, creative use of technology, and a centre for excellence in the cathedral world regarding visitor experience and interpretation.
- Improved PR and reputation of the cathedral as a place for more than solely Christian worship and witness.
- increased visitor figures to Rochester Cathedral