Made possible by money raised from National Lottery players, our heritage project will record intergenerational voices on the impact of community-led regeneration in Custom House.
We are a small team of artists, designers and researchers from Royal College of Art, working in collaboration with community organisers from Custom House Bookshop. Our project partners are Newham Heritage Service, Newham Libraries and Rosetta Arts.
The heritage project outputs will be shared publicly through exhibitions, publications, and an engagement programme during summer 2025, and later deposited in Newham Archives.
Project aims
Document lived experiences: we will train up to 12 individuals from Custom House to record oral history interviews from community members on their personal experiences and impacts of regeneration.
Emphasise community-led regeneration: our goal is to amplify the voices of community members who are directly participating in the regeneration and make public that process. We hope to ensure that Newham Council's regeneration plans are beneficial and inclusive of both current and incoming residents.
Recognise local knowledge: we intend to honour the unique knowledge, histories and expertise residing within Custom House's predominantly working-class and Black and Global Majority Ethnic communities, so these perspectives are acknowledged and celebrated as integral parts of heritage.
Production image for Jessie Brennan Custom House Is Our House, part of Making Space project, a series of four public artworks for the Royal Docks commissioned by UP Projects, 2019. Photo by Alastair Fyfe
ABOUT US
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As the largest dedicated funder of the UK’s heritage, The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033.
Over the next ten years, the Heritage Fund aims to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to bring about benefits for people, places and the natural environment.
The Heritage Fund helps protect, transform and share the things from the past that people care about, from popular museums and historic places, our natural environment and fragile species, to the languages and cultural traditions that celebrate who we are.
The Heritage Fund is passionate about heritage and committed to driving innovation and collaboration to make a positive difference to people’s lives today, while leaving a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy.
Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and use #NationalLotteryHeritageFund www.heritagefund.org.uk
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Founded in 1837, the Royal College of Art is the world's leading university of art and design. Specialising in teaching and research, the RCA offers degrees of MA, MPhil, MFA, MDes, MArch, MEd, MRes, Graduate Diploma and PhD across the disciplines of architecture, arts & humanities, design and communication.
A small, specialist and research-intensive postgraduate university based in the heart of London, the RCA provides 2700 students with unrivalled opportunities to deliver art and design projects that transform the world.
The RCA's approach is founded on the premise that art, design, creative thinking, science, engineering and technology must all collaborate to solve today's global challenges.
The RCA is home to more than 700 of the world’s leading academic and professional staff who teach and develop students in 30 academic programmes. RCA students are exposed to new knowledge in a way that encourages them to experiment.
The RCA runs joint courses with Imperial College London and the Victoria & Albert Museum.
InnovationRCA, the university's centre for enterprise, entrepreneurship, incubation and business support, has helped over 81 RCA business ideas become a reality that has led to the creation of over 800 UK jobs.
Alumni include such major figures as Dame Barbara Hepworth, Bridget Riley, Henry Moore OM, David Hockney OM, Sir Peter Blake, Sir Ridley Scott, Dame Zandra Rhodes, Sir Frank Bowling, Sir James Dyson OM, Tracey Emin RA CBE, Chris Ofili CBE, Sir Anthony Finkelstein, Francesca Amfitheatrof, Erdem Moralıoğlu MBE, Bianca Saunders and Thomas Heatherwick CBE RDI.
The RCA was named the world's leading university of art and design in the QS World Rankings 2024 for the tenth consecutive year (QS World Subject Rankings 2015-2024).
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Custom House Bookshop is an inclusive, community bookshop formed by residents in the ward of Custom House, which is in the London Borough of Newham. This is a woman-led organisation whose two founders have over a century of lived experience in the community.
The four main areas of interest for the bookshop are literature, events and activities related to BAME, disabled, LGBT and Women's issues. Emphasis is placed on children and the promotion of health.
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Newham Heritage Service collects, preserves, and shares the story of the people, places and things that are important to the Borough of Newham’s heritage. Our collections span seven decades and contain thousands of unique items, including manuscripts, photographs, films, oral histories, objects, artwork, and much more.
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There are ten libraries across Newham, each offering a range of services and community activities as well as a fantastic selection of books and other reading material.
Many of our libraries have a busy schedule of regular activities to suit all ages and tastes, from parent and toddler sessions, reading groups and chess to knitting, over 50s club and gentle exercise.
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Rosetta Arts is proud to be a dynamic and diverse organisation, delivering exciting, innovative and creative courses, workshops and experiences for people in east London. We reach out to those who otherwise have little access to the rich and transformative benefits of the arts and education. At the heart of our programming, there is something for all ages and stages of a person’s creative learning and development. Working across gender, disability, age and income, we respond to poverty and inequality by acting as a catalyst for creative talent.
