Paddling Heritage 

British Canoeing (BC) wants to ensure that the story of paddling in England is preserved and shared for existing and future generations. 

To do this, BC needs to have a clear idea of the heritage that exists and the stories it tells. They want to know how to help the community better look after and share this heritage and what you need them to do to achieve this! 

So BC have tasked Sporting Heritage to reach out to the paddling community and find out what they need to do going forward. Sporting Heritage is the subject specialist network for sport in the UK and a not-for-profit community interest company.

The heritage we're interested in hearing about is not just medals and trophies, but anything that tells the story of a sport and its communities: this could be equipment, financial records, oral history recordings, films, songs, memorabilia, or photographs.

The aim of this survey is to to:

1. Better understand what paddling heritage collections exist within England (although please do tell us about any heritage connected to Wales, Scotland and NI too) and the stories they tell;

2. To provide a first stage inventory of the distributed collections of paddling heritage and understand what support is needed to protect, preserve and share these collections;

3. To shout about paddling, its role in wider society, and its impact on individuals and communities. 

An output of this research will be to compile an online exhibition showing the breadth and significance of paddling heritage in England. 

All data supplied through this survey will be handled according to GDPR guidelines. 

If you have any questions about this survey,  or anything else to do with Sporting heritage CIC, please contact Dr Justine Reilly at justine@sportingheritage.org.uk