Pumphouse Museum and Lavender Pond, Rotherhithe, London 

PUMPHOUSE EDUCATIONAL MUSEUM 2002 – 2011: This unique museum housed a local history museum based on a collection of artefacts from the foreshore of the river Thames; a reminiscence  room with a variety of domestic appliances through the twentieth century; the Peek Frean Biscuit Factory memorabilia; and a Nature Park with pond. It therefore gave us huge scope to run a massive variety of performances, projects and workshops to enlighten and introduce people to all these different areas of study, some of which are listed below.

Annie Forester: Set in a WW2 installation room this character took audiences back in time to catch a glimpse of what it was like to live through the war years in SE London. Audiences engaged with the character and heard her family stories as she did her washing, cooking and other domestic duties.

Skeletal Revelations: Audiences meet DS Bucket who takes them to a forensic crime scene. As various clues are unearthed and put together the groups unveil a true story of crime and passion from Rotherhithe in Victorian times.

Intergenerational Projects: Strictly Singing – Forging partnerships between Primary schools and local Care homes through singing war time medleys and modern songs. Strictly Singing in YouTube

Strictly Biscuits: Forging good relationships between teenagers and local elders through making biscuits and getting them ready to market.

Final day of the Project Strictly Biscuits at the Pumphouse Museum

Biscuit Makers eager to know how their products are received.

Strictly Biscuits at the Pumphouse Museum

Nature Projects: Dragonflies – A study of their history, anatomy and myths and legends surrounding them, culminating in performances using dance, drama and poetry.

Newts – Pond dipping and stories, art and craft combined to make this project fascinating.

Mini-Beasts and Pond Life – An adventure in mini-beast city of discovery and learning. A wide range of fascinating tales were woven in to the trail.

Southwark Pilgrims – Young people were introduced to the area through finding artefacts on the foreshore and then taught the art of storytelling to bring the past to life using these items.

History Workshops: Egyptians – A step back in time and solving of clues leads the class back to the Land of the Dead where the children meet Anubis and have to pass certain tests in order to get away with their lives.

Saxons: A storytelling programme in the Saxon Hut. The story of Beowolf captivates the children’s imaginations.