Our consultation

The economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic caused local music venues across the UK to close or relocate at an unprecedented rate, and with the deepening cost-of-living crisis the sector continues to be challenged. From folk clubs to club nights, grassroots music venues and initiatives are deeply embedded in community life and are home to rich local and personal memories. However, with doors closed and venues reorganising and changing hands, records, artefacts and other materials are at risk of being lost or damaged.

In 2021, Our Place — a University of York and Swansea University project — began an ongoing consultation exercise, asking venues across the UK to give their input. We asked questions that helped to assess the scale of the problem and ask what measures could be put in place to equip UK community music venues with knowledge, tools, and techniques to safeguard their memories.

You can see the results of our questionnaire here. These responses have guided our priorities in building the DIY preservation kit, but we are keen to hear more from music venues and their communities, identifying additional needs and feeding back on ways the DIY kit might be further developed. Follow the ‘Get in touch’ link above to contact us and we will get back to you — your feedback and suggestions are very welcome!