A Centre for Excellence
The project has a long term aim of purchasing or renting a building of an historical in nature situated in Stratford upon Avon district for the purpose of retaining some of the area's history that is associated with the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.
It is intended that the purpose of the building would be preservation in the first instance. However, the building will host offices, cafe, museum and meeting rooms. The trustees will recruit volunteers, full and part time staff to participate in its refurbishment and development as a centre of reminiscence excellence.
The building will also be a host for training workshops and conferences together with providing a much needed community facility that voluntary organisations can also use.
The Centre would link into the tourist trade and provide opportunities for the local residential homes to get their members involved. Hosting reminiscence boxes that stimulate the five senses.
The centre would create a place that schools would see as a resource by providing inter-active programmes linked to the core curriculum.
WRAP would work closley with the County Council's library and heritage service to ensure resources were linked.
It is also hope that organisation such as the Alzheimer’s society, the royal British legion and the Stratford Upon Avon town trust will consider the benefits of being possible partners.
The idea of having a centre of excellence that serves the West Midlands has been arrived at by studying research undertaken in 2005 by Margaret Hunter a respected educationalist. The study looked into the need in Warwickshire for Reminiscence work and the support available for that work to continue.
WRAP has also worked with the The Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon, training staff in reminiscence therapy that delivered workshops linked to the many artifacts donated to the museum.
http://archive.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk/exhibitions_archive.html