Following the success of www.the-ndaca.org, Shape is pleased to announce that we have been awarded initial support* from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for development funding of £142,300 to develop our next major heritage project: the National Disability Movement Archive & Collections (NDMAC).  

Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, NDMAC will bring to life the heritage and rich history of the Disabled Peoples’ Rights Movement, spanning more than thirty years. The movement for disability rights and inclusion played a significant role in achieving greater recognition for disabled people’s rights.   

NDACA collected the heritage story of the Disability Arts Movement.  NDMAC will collect the heritage story of the wider Disability Movement. The development phase is focused on planning for the delivery phase submission when we apply for a full National Lottery grant of £840,000.Our ultimate aim is to collect archives and deposits from the movement and interpret them for new audiences. 

During the development phase 2020 - 2021

The Collections to be delivered will underpin the story of the unique UK Disability Rights Movement of the last thirty years; we will plan for the digital and physical archive and collections within the NDMAC Repository, with plans to be developed to also create the NDMAC website and the NDMAC E-Learning Portal – all also to be planned in the NDMAC Development Phase 2020/21.

Alex Cowan MA FRSA, NDMAC Head of Archives & Collections says… 

‘The history of the UK Disabled People’s Rights Movement is the story of how individual struggles and experiences combined into powerful advocacy for the rights of disabled people. NDMAC will tell this story through an expansive archival collection of photos, documents, diaries, video and striking protest badges, banners and t-shirts. NDMAC will ensure this history is preserved for those who were part of it and accessible and relevant to modern audiences. Whether from the frontline or the backroom, NDMAC is particularly looking for stories and ephemera that tell the history of the tumultuous period 1974 – 1995, when disabled people and their allies took to the streets and the corridors of power to fight for their rights and their inclusion.’

Please contact Alex on [email protected] for more information or to offer deposits.

The NDMAC Delivery Phase will also see Shape deliver key Delivery Phase plans during the Development Phase, including the NDMAC CMP, NDMAC MMP & NDMAC Acquisitions Plan, plus writing the NDMAC Content and Condition survey and its analysis of the collection, prioritising high risk items for digitisation, plus co-writing and/or advising on the RIBA stages documents for the NDMAC website. 

With thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund for making NDMAC possible. 

For more information please feel free to email Alex Cowan,  NDMAC Head of Archives and Collections on [email protected] 

About The National Lottery Heritage Fund

*National Lottery Heritage Fund grant applications over £250,000 are assessed in two rounds. Shape Arts has initially been granted round one development funding of £142,300 by The National Lottery Heritage Fund allowing it to progress with its plans. Detailed proposals are then considered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund at second round, where the final decision is made on the full grant of £840,000.

Using money raised by the National Lottery, we inspire, lead and resource the UK’s heritage to create positive change for people and communities, now and in the future. www.heritagefund.org.uk 

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