Visits at home
We could visit with a camera and scanner, sit down with an album and let the photographs start the conversation. This would also help people who find it difficult to travel.
A proposed heritage partnership
Our Hemel,
Our Stories.
People across Hemel have stories worth hearing. Together, we could help people share their memories, care for the photographs and recordings, and keep those stories available for the future.
How we could find the stories ↓A discussion proposal by Evan Brindle / True Corner.
Scope, permissions and partnership to be agreed.
Scope, permissions and partnership to be agreed.
01 / Why this matters
There is a whole town’s history
in people’s everyday memories.
A photograph can bring back the name of a neighbour, the journey to a first job or the feeling of arriving somewhere new. Often it is the conversation around an image that tells us why it matters.
I would like to help gather those conversations when people are ready to share them, in their own words. My interview with my grandfather, Arthur, is one example of how much a family memory can reveal about the wider story of Hemel.
Dacorum Heritage already cares for photographs, documents, objects and recorded memories, and finds ways to share them beyond the Museum Store. Your reminiscence activities and Ovaltine work show the value of giving people something familiar to talk about, and the time to remember together.
Our Hemel, Our Stories could grow from that foundation. We would begin with the people you know, the gaps you would like to explore and the material already in your care. My role would be to help make the gathering and recording possible, working alongside your knowledge of the collection and the communities it represents.
Background: the museum and its collections · reminiscence activities · Ovaltine memories.
02 / Finding the stories
How we would find people and their stories
We could start with a street, a workplace or a memory people share. Something familiar gives people a way into the conversation.
Start with what you already have
We could look through photographs and earlier interviews with your team. Who might know more about them? Which stories would you like to hear?
Ask around
Your volunteers, local groups and previous contributors may know people we could speak to. We could also ask each person who else they think we should meet.
Make it easy to take part
A simple invitation could ask: ‘Do you remember your first home in Hemel?’ Tell people what we are doing, how to get in touch and what would happen next. They should be able to phone as well as respond online.
Hear from different people
We should hear from people beyond those already involved with the museum. Together, we could think about which streets, ages and experiences we have yet to hear from.
Before inviting people, we would agree who will reply and when the team has time to begin. That needs to fit around the museum’s current collections work.
03 / Gathering the memories
Ways we could gather the stories
Some people will be happier talking at home. Others may enjoy meeting old neighbours and looking through photos together. We can choose what suits them.
These are ideas for us to discuss together.
A day of interviews
People could book a time at a local venue. We would have somewhere to chat and look at photos, with a quiet room nearby for recording.
A photo-scanning day
Invite people to bring their photographs. We could scan them, ask who and what they show, and offer a short interview. People would take their originals home and receive digital copies.
Memories on a map
Put a large map on a table and ask people to mark a place they remember. It might be their first home, a factory or a favourite meeting place. This could lead us to people with a shared story.
Bring old neighbours together
A few neighbours or former colleagues could meet over photographs. They may remember things together that would not come up in an interview on their own.
A conversation between generations
A grandchild could ask the questions, with help beforehand. They could also visit a remembered place together and take a new photograph.
Who is in this photograph?
Share a photograph from the collection and ask for help identifying its people or place. We could follow up with those who recognise it and record what they remember.
Show the films locally
Invite contributors to watch the films together. People could add a detail, spot a familiar face or suggest someone else we should speak to.
Once we know which ideas you like, we can work out the venue, time, people and equipment needed.
04 / Recording and caring for the material
What happens before, during and after recording
We would keep the story, the photographs and the details that help explain them together. Here is how I would approach it.
Have a chat first
I would speak with each person before filming, hear a little of their story and explain what taking part involves. We would agree what can be recorded and shared. They can take a break or leave a question unanswered.
Give people time
I would use a few questions to get started, then listen and let the conversation develop. A photograph or object can help. I would note any names or dates we need to check later.
Look after the photographs
We would record who owns each photograph and what they know about it. At a scanning day, we would keep a list so every original goes back to the right person.
Make safe copies
After recording, I would check the files and make a backup. The original recordings and scans would stay unchanged. Each story would have a reference linking its film, photos, transcript and permissions.
Agree where it will live
Before we start, we would ask how your team wants the material stored and described. It should be easy for you to find and use alongside the collection you already have.
Keep people involved
We would tell contributors what happens next, check details with them and agree how they will receive copies. When the story is ready, we would let them know where they can see it.
What we would need from you
Your knowledge of the collection, help finding people and checking details, and guidance on storing and sharing the material. We would agree who I should work with and when you can review things.
What I would do
I would help organise the days, talk with contributors, record the interviews and photographs, and keep the files in order. Then I would edit the agreed films and prepare the material for you to keep.
05 / Arthur’s story
Arthur Giddings remembers
the early New Town.
An interview I filmed with my grandfather gives a first example of the approach: a personal memory, told in his own voice.
For a new interview, we would agree the story with the museum, record it carefully and prepare a film that retains the contributor’s meaning. Names, dates, historical context and permissions would be checked before publication.
Read the interview extract
There was no pavements, there was no street lights, there was no fences, there was no gardens, and it was just on the edge of a place called Warners End. And there was nothing beyond Warners End. And so we had to build up a sort of community of ourselves in the street itself, which we did. And it was a good community.
Working transcript for review. Final captions and timing need a listening check before public use.
06 / What the digital review can help us do
Where Dacorum is now,
and what we could develop.
We reviewed the public website, social channels, film library and routes into participation. Dacorum has an established presence. The opportunity is to make more of its stories and connect the different channels around a clear purpose.
2.1KFacebook followers
1,205Instagram followers
47YouTube videos
Existing oral historiesA collection and method to build on
Public displays recorded in the supplied audit on 29 October 2026. Audiences overlap; these are not combined reach or measures of engagement.
| What the review found | What we could do | What would show progress |
|---|---|---|
| Active social channels The sampled Facebook and Instagram activity includes events, news and exhibition content. | Introduce a considered mix of first-person memories, collection details and focused local questions alongside essential notices. | Useful contributor responses, shares, destination clicks and viewing compared with the museum’s own baseline. |
| A film library already exists YouTube provides 47 videos, including Ovaltine and oral-history material. | Review selected films for excerpts, captions, clearer titles, covers and links to related museum resources, subject to reuse permissions. | Watch time, retention and onward visits; new use of material already produced. |
| Some onward routes are dated The audited social link hub still promoted a May 2024 talk as the next talk. | Refresh shared links and agree one current destination for each campaign, with a named owner for updates. | Checked destinations, fewer expired invitations and completed actions from tagged links. |
| Participation needs a supported route Collections work has prompted a pause on new enquiries until April 2027. | Agree a separate project intake route, response responsibility, appointment capacity and a clear explanation of what happens next. | Responses handled within an agreed period and contributions taken through to usable, documented stories. |
| Access and consistency need attention The audit flags form labelling and inconsistent external visitor information for review. | Confirm access guidance with the museum and existing web support. Prepare captions, transcripts and clear image descriptions for new material. | Documented checks, consistent visitor guidance and accessible versions delivered with each story. |
| Existing planning and partners matter A communications plan was advertised; current appointment and supplier responsibilities were not confirmed. | Fit delivery around the museum’s agreed priorities, people and systems. Establish responsibilities before adding a new channel or tool. | A workable production and approval rhythm, with staff time and responsibilities recorded. |
From public visibility to useful participation
For a story campaign, the route could be: a short clip introduces a specific memory; the viewer follows a link to the longer story; a clear invitation explains how to contribute; the project team follows up and records what can be preserved. Each stage should have an owner and a simple way to tell whether it is working.
Before setting targets, we would ask for a comparable period of channel and website data. That would let us distinguish viewing from meaningful responses, and useful responses from material that can actually join the collection. Staff time and approval workload matter alongside audience figures.
Evidence, sources and limits
Based on the supplied public-source audit dated 29 October 2026. This was a sampled external review, not private account analytics, a supplier-contract review or a full accessibility assessment. The audit does not establish disengagement, poor return on investment or a need to replace the website.
The museum’s Ovaltine update records 23 former workers attending and four filmed interviews. Its published communications brief covers audiences, channels and capacity; appointment and delivery status remain unconfirmed. Its collections announcement confirms the enquiry pause. Recommendations above are proposed work, not measured outcomes.
07 / Sharing the stories
How we could share the stories
Once we have gathered the stories, we can decide together how to share them. Some need a longer film. A short clip or a photograph may be enough to bring back a memory and start another conversation.
Using the collection
You already have photographs, documents and objects that could help people remember. We could look through a selection together and use them to start conversations.
Some could also appear in the films and short clips, alongside the new interviews. We would agree which images we can use and keep their credits and collection details with them.
Explore Dacorum Heritage’s existing online exhibitions.
Building on your films
Your YouTube channel already brings together Ovaltine archive footage, oral histories, short collection films, community activities and longer local-history talks. Our Hemel, Our Stories could sit within that wider body of work. We could look together at which existing films connect with the new memories, what could be shared again with the right permissions, and where a new contribution would add something.
Examples in the channel listing include Ovaltine Factory and Farms Footage, Fireworks and Festivals Oral Histories and A little bit about the Romans.
What we could make
From an interview, we could make a longer film, short captioned clips, a story with photographs, or something for your newsletter. We could also prepare a transcript or show the films at a local event. We would choose what is useful for each story.
Working format examples, using the same interview passage. Final captions, platform safe areas, cover images and publishing copy would be checked before delivery. No posts have been published.
Choose the moment
Find a self-contained memory that makes sense outside the longer interview.
Adapt for the channel
Set the length, framing, captions and opening around how people will encounter it.
Connect the versions
Give viewers a current route to the full story, related collections or a focused invitation.
Learn from use
Review viewing, useful responses and staff time before making the next set.
Keeping the stories
in use.
The recordings and photographs should remain useful long after the first film has been shared.
We would agree those uses before filming, then deliver organised files, transcripts, credits and permissions for the museum’s chosen system. The new work should fit existing archives and channels, with a clear handover.
We could review how the stories are being used, whether they are prompting useful conversations, and what the museum and contributors would like to explore next.
The people behind the stories
Let’s listen to the people of Hemel.
Examples of interviews I’ve filmed, to give you a feel for how the Hemel stories could look.
For discussion
Whose memories could
we help bring together?
A useful first conversation would be about the people you hope to hear from, the stories already in your care and what support would make gathering them possible.
Return to the film ↑
What helped your street become a community?
Arthur remembers the early days of Hemel’s New Town.
dacorumheritage A memory from Our Hemel, Our Stories. What do you remember about your first neighbours?
A short memory to catch someone’s attention and invite them to share their own.
“And it was a good community.”
Listen to Arthur’s memory of settling in Hemel.
A post that starts a conversation and points people towards the full story.
Arthur’s memories of the New Town
Arthur moved to Hemel with his family for work. He remembers the neighbours who helped make a new street feel like home.
Watch Arthur’s story →A portrait and short introduction for a museum page or email, linking readers to the film.