Howard Williams and Pauline Clarke, together with Andy Heaton of the Trefonen Rural Protection Group, put together an exciting scheduled public conference and guided walk at Trefonen, Shropshire. Titled Special Offa: Communities and Offa’s Dyke, this public event was planned to take place on 4 April 2020, with a morning of talks by academics, heritage experts and local enthusiasts, followed by an afternoon walk to explore the new 50th anniversary heritage posts and the well-preserved sections of Offa’s Dyke north of the village. By doing so, the aim was to explore different dimensions of relationships between communities and Offa’s Dyke, past and present, from a range of different perspectives and showcasing the latest research and thinking. The choice of Trefonen was not arbitrary: the village sits on Offa’s Dyke, and has many local enthusiast groups who have worked hard to promote and benefit the local area’s history and heritage.
However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sadly we had to postpone the event. Instead, we decided to ‘go digital’ rather than cancel outright. To this end, not only are we delighted that EVERY confirmed speaker agreed to present via digital media, but we had invitations of many ADDITIONAL presentations. The results will be presented today via this blog, and disseminated via YouTube videos, and posts on Facebook and tweets on Twitter.
DIGTIAL Special Offa Programme 30-03-20
Afterwards, we uploaded links to all the presentations on the Offa’s Dyke Collaboratory blog to curate this distinctive and experimental event for those wishing to learn more about Wat’s Dyke, Offa’s Dyke, and the landscapes of the Anglo-Welsh borderlands.
The Offa's Dyke Collaboratory 