Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

in
Caerleon 2008
Who coordinates and runs the Festival of British Archaeology?
The Festival is coordinated by the Council for British Archaeology, but individual events around the country are run by hundreds of organisations, including museums, archaeological societies, National Park authorities, heritage sites, archaeological units and universities. The Festival for British Archaeology grew from the success of National Archaeology Days and National Archaeology Week.
Is the Festival of British Archaeology an English Heritage event?
The event is coordinated by the Council for British Archaeology but it receives its core funding from English Heritage. English Heritage sites do hold events as part of the Festival of British Archaeology, as do many other large and small organisations including the National Trust, the Portable Antiquities Scheme and The Churches Conservation Trust.
What happened to National Archaeology Week?
National Archaeology Week (NAW) grew from a single day event which was launched as National Archaeology Day, back in 1990. NAW was a great success for the 4 years it was held and this led to the event being extended to a fortnight long event in 2009. This gives participating venues more of a choice of when to hold their event and it also gives the public a greater opportunity to visit more events over the fortnight. As a week became a fortnight, the name of the event changed as well. The new name Festival of British Archaeology reflects the fact that this is not just an awareness raising event – there are hundreds of events for everyone to take part in across the UK, in celebration of our historic environment and the fantastic archaeological work that takes place all over our country and to encourage everyone to get involved in archaeology.
Prescot Street Tour, L-P Archaeology 2008
How can I participate and hold an event?
Any organisation with an interest in archaeology, history or heritage can take part in the Festival of British Archaeology. You do not need to be an archaeologist to hold an event and your event does not have to be an excavation! The Festival of British Archaeology is all about getting people involved, encouraging them to think about the historic environment around them and showing them all the different aspects that are involved in understanding, managing and enjoying our heritage. You can hold all sorts of events from guided walks and talks to hands-on activity days, finds identification days and experimental archaeology days. For more information visit the organiser information section.
Why isn’t my local museum/heritage site taking part in the Festival?
More and more museums and heritage sites are taking part in the Festival of British Archaeology every year. We try to encourage as many organisations as possible to take part in the event and celebrate archaeology for all. Why not ask your local museum/heritage site whether they have considered taking part in the event and ask them to get in touch with the CBA for more information. Alternatively contact us and will we approach them about taking part in the next event.
Kingston Lacy Archaeology Weekend
Does the CBA offer insurance cover for participating venues?
The Council for British Archaeology offers free public liability insurance, product’s liability insurance and employer’s liability insurance cover to organisers and properties taking part in the Festival of British Archaeology, and who have got their event(s) listed in the official Festival of British Archaeology listings.
How can I become more involved in archaeology?
See Get involved in Archaeology for more information. For more information about archaeology and how to get involved, including information on local societies, community archaeology projects, educational courses and more, please visit the [Council for British Archaeology(http://www.britarch.ac.uk/getinvolved “Get Involved section on the main CBA website”) website. To keep up to date with the latest news and opinion in archaeology, why not try British Archaeology magazine, the voice of archaeology in Britain and beyond, available through subscription and from all good newsagents. The Young Archaeologists’ Club is the only UK-wide club available for 8–16 year olds interested in archaeology. Visit the YAC website to find out more.
Why are downloadable posters only available in English and Welsh?
The CBA produces a bilingual English and Welsh version of the downloadable Festival poster because of high demand for this by organisers of Festival events in Wales and the need to display information bilingually. Translation of text for these posters was kindly provided by the National Museum Wales. If you would like to suggest other bilingual versions of the poster, where you think there is demand for it, please contact us.
Why are there not many events taking place in Scotland?
The Festival of British Archaeology is a celebration of archaeology in the UK and of the presentation of archaeology from around the world in the UK. Participation in the event has always been inclusive and all event organisers from across the UK are welcomed and encouraged to take part in the event.

However, many organisations with limited resources prefer to hold their main events during Scotland’s own celebration of archaeology ‘Scottish Archaeology Month’.

Scottish Archaeology Month has always been acknowledged as the primary event for the celebration of Scotland’s heritage and this continues to be the case, with Archaeology Scotland continually working to encourage more people to take part, from professional archaeologists to local heritage groups, archaeological and historical societies, Young Archaeologists’ Club branches and enthusiastic individuals with an interest in their local history or monuments. The event is extremely successful throughout Scotland with over 200 organisations and individuals holding events each year.

The Festival of British Archaeology and Scottish Archaeology Month work towards the same goal of encouraging greater understanding of and participation in archaeology. Together, their extensive and wide reaching programmes allow thousands of people to discover the archaeological heritage of the UK and help to champion the importance of the UK’s heritage.

Due to the very different timings of these two complementary events, the CBA has in the past invited organisations in Scotland to participate in its UK-wide event, and continues to do so; it is recognised that larger organisations potentially have the resources to support both the Festival and SAM and may wish to do so. The CBA does not approach the smaller local groups and societies that participate in SAM, as it is appreciated that these groups may only have the resources to be able to support one such event each year, and in such an event, SAM is the primary event for Scottish organisations. However, any organisation wishing to participate in the Festival of British Archaeology is welcome to do so.