Forest School Nursery
Forest School Nursery

Contact us

Northfield Community Centre,
King Avenue, Bootle, L20 0BZ

theinclusionnetwork@live.com

Under Our Umbrella

Home Under Our Umbrella
Liverpool Overhead Railway

Under Our Umbrella

Background and Aims
 
This project engaged young people from Bootle and Litherland with their local heritage through the story of the Liverpool Overhead Railway, known as the Dockers’ Umbrella. The aim was to uncover overlooked working-class stories of everyday life along the docks, and to give participants the opportunity to interpret these histories through drama, oral history, museum research, and digital creativity.

Project Highlights

 

  • Under Our Umbrella Digital Heritage App: We created an interactive heritage app that blends green-screened monologues, oral histories, and immersive 360° video and audio — bringing local history to life in a modern, accessible way.

  • Heritage Site Visits: Young people from Bootle and Litherland explored archival material and visited historic spaces first-hand, giving them a unique connection to their local heritage.

  • Oral History Interviews: Participants captured lived experiences from their community — including powerful memories of riding the Overhead Railway during the Blitz.

  • Community Sharing Event: To celebrate the project, young people proudly presented their stories to families and the wider community, showcasing their creativity and learning.

  • Inspiring a Love for History: Many children reported a new interest in history, with some eager to share the app in their schools. Remarkably, four students have now chosen History at GCSE as a direct result of their involvement.

A special mention to Andrew Dean, who took time to travel to our centre and share his memories of the overhead railway with our young people, it was a very special start to the project.

The Complete Project

We would like to say a special thanks to everybody who helped us to shape this project including young people, staff parents and our amazing partners C&T. To see the outcome of this wonderful project, click the links below.

 
Link to final output: https://app.prospero.digital/s/under-our-umbrella
Link to video case study: https://youtu.be/ZA0iAo4ojEg