Nicola Bell

Clients and Projects

Much of my work is evaluating projects funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Arts Council and other organisations. From churches and small, volunteer-run projects to large organisations such as the National Trust, Historic England, English Heritage and the British Library.

Click on the tabs below for more information on some of the clients and projects I have been involved with.

Client/ProjectDescription
Northumberland Archives Blyth to the Future: primary schools design their town of the future
Heritage Schools, Historic England Case studies for the annual evaluation of Heritage Schools, with Qa Research
Northumberland Wildlife Trust Kielderhead Wildwood, restoring wilderness woodland
Northumberland LIbraries Hadrian's Wall 1900 programme of talks and workshops about photographer and archaeolgist John Pattison Gibson
Perth & Kinross Heritage Trust Evaluation planning for Lower City Mills restoration
Carlisle Cathedral Re-development of the Fratry Hall and associated activities for visitors and schools
Chapel of Light (St Columba's) Sunderland Resilient Heritage project to provide a sustainable future for the church with increased community use
Northumberland Archives Remote volunteering transcription project; programme of online talks to attract new audiences for Northumberland Archives
Building the Capacity and Resilience of Kielder Water and Forest Park, Kielder Water and Forest Park Development Trust Resilient Heritage project evaluation, to investigate new ways of income generation and increase skills and capacity amongst the Trust's board members.
Canny Chanters Chopwell Arts Creative workshops (music, mosaics, felt, writing, photography etc) to boost people's wellbeing. Based in Chopwell village.
Kings Seat Hillfort, Perth & Kinross Heritage Trust Community archaeology dig at 6th century hillfort near Dunkeld, Perth
Pilgrim Roots, Bassetlaw District Council To commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Separatists sailing to America in the Mayflower; project based in Nottinghamshire to increase understanding of the Separatists and their pursuit of tolerance and freedom, and how this can be reflected today.
Blanchland Abbey Project Resilient Heritage Project evaluation, a sustainable future for the church and the small rural village of Blanchland
St George, Mickley Grant for Places of Worship evaluation. Structural repairs and a programme of events for local residents and visitors.
The Heritage Centre, Bellingham Resilient Heritage Project evaluation: a sustainable future for the Heritage Centre
St Michael and All Angels, Alnham Grant for Places of Worship evaluation. Structural repairs and a programme of events for local residents and visitors.
Snapping the Stiletto, Essex County Council Community groups and volunteers research museums' collections to tell stories of inspirational Essex women.
Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust Living Wild at Kielder, creating new wildlife experiences for visitors to Kielder.
Durham Cathedral, Open Treasure Advice and training on carrying out the evaluation of the Heritage Lottery funded project. Visitor surveys in Cathedral and exhibition. Data analysis and reporting.
Inspired Futures Evaluating heritage interpretation, community involvement, capital works for 18 churches, rural and urban, in NE England. Advice for churches on visitor studies and community consultation.
Beamish Museum Advice on developing evaluation framework for Remaking Beamish, Heritage Lottery Fund Stage 2 grant application.
Quarry Bank National Trust: evaluation of Quarry Bank Project, re-presentation of the whole Quarry Bank site, the best-preserved early industrial (cotton mill) site in England.
National Glass Centre Evaluation of Glass Beats, young people making glass musical instruments, composing and performing.
Friends of the North Pennines Evaluation of Dukesfield Smelters and Carriers Project; Dukesfield Smelt Mill restoration, learning and participation events about the lead industry. The evaluation report is here.
Journey to Justice Evaluation of touring exhibition, events and training about the Civil Rights Movement and social justice.
National Glass Centre Evaluation of National Glass Centre Heritage Project.
National Glass Centre Evaluation of glass making project for young people with disabilities.
National Museums Northern Ireland Evaluation of Weekends at the Museums programme.
November Club Evaluation of Dr Mullins' Anatomy of the Theatre Royal, promenade performance at the Theatre Royal.
The National Trust, Wallington Evaluation of Teacups, Zebras and Dancing Kaisers promenade performances.
Friends of Tees Heritage Park and Groundwork North East Review of Phase 1 of Tees Heritage Park.
Killhope, North of England Leadmining Museum DaleForce project to involve rural young people in creative activities.
Imperial War Museum Development of Learning Evaluation Framework for all IWM sites.
ICOM Croatia, Zagreb Training on evaluation skills.
Museoforum, Ljubljana, Slovenia Training on evaluation work with teenagers
National Glass Centre, Sunderland Story of Sunderland, community project about Benedict Biscop and glass making.
Greater Morpeth Development Trust Evaluation of Lord Sanger's Circus Heritage Trail, Morpeth.
Thames Discovery Programme Evaluation of the FROGs (Foreshore Recording & Observation Groups) - recording and monitoring archaeology on the Thames foreshore.
Woodhorn Museum and Northumberland Archives Evaluation of Working Lives, Family Learning, Access to Northumberland's History.
Learning Arc (archives education services in the North East) Evaluation of Challenging History.
Woodhorn Museum and Northumberland Archives Evaluation toolkit and training for staff.
Wansbeck Initiative Woodhorn Our Woodhorn, community family history project.
Durham County Council Community Heritage Project.
Manchester Hub Museums Key Stage 3 Citizenship programme.
Tyne & Wear Museums Evaluation of school and community programmes.
British Museum and Tyne & Wear Museums Across the Board - touring exhibition about board games.
British Library and North East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Tour of facsimile copy of Lindisfarne Gospels.
The Quilters' Guild Outreach programme.
Middlesbrough Art Gallery Audience development programme.
University of Newcastle and Northumberland National Park Authority School Grounds Project.
Skills Building for the Future (Highlands and Islands) Training in evaluation skills.
Group for Education in Museums, Scotland Training in evaluation skills.
MLA North East Training in evaluation skills for Their Past Your Future 2.
Múzeumok és Látogatók Alapítvany (Hungary) Training in evaluation and consultation skills.
Client/ProjectDescription
Tees Valley Museums Review of CPD provision for teachers
Hartlepool Museum and Art Gallery Review of learning provision for schools
Heritage Centre, Bellingham Resources for schools' workshops
Archives and Records Association Online training workshop about evaluation skills
Head of Steam, Darlington Railway Museum Review of the museum's learning offer, prior to Head of Steam's closure and subsequent re-opening
English Heritage Schools' workshops and Early Years programme for Extraordinary Measures contemporary art exhibition at Belsay Hall.
Our Coast Our Sea Website of learning resources and activities for Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Berwickshire and North Northumberland European Marine Site; with Flow Associates and Cimex Media Ltd.
British Library Developing Henry VIII touring exhibition.
English Heritage Discovery Visits, Housesteads Roman Fort and Carlisle Castle.
British Library "Reaching the Regions" - developing regional resources linked to the British Library's collections.
Darlington Railway Museum Schools' resources and lifelong learning programme.
Tees Valley Museums Resource boxes for schools.
The Heritage Centre, Bellingham Schools' visits and resources, and lifelong learning programme.
Northumberland National Park Authority Iron Age resource boxes.
Woodhorn Colliery Museum History Mystery Thinking Skills activities for schools.
Client/ProjectDescription
With the North of England Civic Trust, for Sunderland City Council Review of heritage organisations and resources in Washington and the Coalfield wards of Sunderland, and recommendations for future developments.
English Heritage and The National Trust Community consultations for improving the visitor experience at Housesteads Roman Fort.
North East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Max Card scheme, access to heritage and cultural venues for looked-after children.
North East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council School Gate programme, encouraging schools and families to engage with museums, libraries and archives.
North East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Literature Matters, encouraging Initial Teacher Trainees to use museums, libraries and archives.
Client/ProjectDescription
Newcastle Diocese, Rural Strand Case studies of nine churches, reviewing ministry and governance to ascertain what is effective for churches to flourish
Museums + Heritage Show Presentation on Working with an External Evaluator in Visitor Insight strand, curated by Visitor Studies Group.
Offley Hoo Farm, Hertfordshire Advice on developing farm visits for schools.
North East Maritime Trust Feasibility study
North East Regional Museums Hub Good practice guide to consultation.
North East Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Research and good practice guide to learning spaces in museums and galleries.
Hartlepool Museums Service Advice on developing learning spaces.
University of Newcastle Development study for the University's Cultural Quarter.
University of Newcastle Northumberland Cultural Strategy Heritage Action Plan.
North West Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Consultations in Cumbria for Education Programme Delivery Plan.
Client/ProjectDescription
KÖME, Cultural Heritage Managers' Association, Hungary Conference presentation and workshop on practical methods for visitor studies at heritage sites
Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest Advice on carrying out visitor studies
MKVM, Hungarian Museum of Trade and Tourism Copy editing text for exhibitions and guide books
Our Slovenia awards, Ljubljana Presentation on visitors and cultural heritage places.
ICOM Croatia, Split Lecture and workshop on visitor studies.
British Embassy, Slovenia Workshop on visitors and cultural heritage places, Radenci.
ICOM Croatia, Zagreb Lecture and workshop on evaluation skills.
Museoforum, Ljubljana, Slovenia Lecture and workshop on evaluation with teenagers.
Historical Museum, Pécs Advice on developing the education space.
Chapter on Learning with Objects for a new museum learning handbook "A Múzeumi Tanulás Kézikönyve", ELTE TTK Multimédia Pedagógiai és Informació Technológiai Központ (Eötvös Loránd University Multimedia Teaching and IT Centre), and the Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum (Hungarian Natural History Museum).
Múzeumok és Látogatók Alapítvány (Museums and Visitors Foundation) Training workshops on community consultation, evaluation techniques and developing museum education spaces, for Múzeumok és Látogatók Alapítvány (Museums and Visitors Foundation).
Ministry of Education and Culture and the Ministry of National Cultural Heritage Conference papers for Ministry of Education and Culture and the Ministry of National Cultural Heritage, about museum education in England.
Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest Lecture on English museums and e-learning websites for Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest