Our Objectives are to:
1. Highlight examples of good practice. European host partners will present their activities and methods of providing creative training in crafts while encouraging participants to appreciate the cultural connections behind these skills.
2 Explore the added value of developing close associations with the creative industries throughout Europe (i.e. bridging the gap between education and real working businesses and practitioners).
3. Encourage entrepreneurship and business start ups in the cultural sector. Hosts will present their own schemes and systems for encouraging real-work placements for their own trainees.
4. Explore the value of cultural/creative crafts in the rural environment.
5. Provide trainers and training planners working in the cultural, craft and heritage sectors in the UK with an opportunity to visit other European training providers who are facing similar challenges.
6. To enable beneficiaries to draw conclusions and comparisons between the UK and host country in terms of training delivery, health and safety, formal and informal environments and the use of social dialogue to stimulate the exchange of ideas in the work place.
7. Encourage trainers to consider including a larger cultural heritage component to their training provision. This should aim to provide an appreciation of the region's cultural heritage (related to the skills training provided) as well as placing this cultural identity in the context of a wider European shared heritage.
8. To ultimately instill a sense of European citizenship in the UK trainees.
9. To provide trainers with innovative ideas and an approach to training delivery, which complement the LSC, DCMS and EC strategies.
10. To address issues in the wider cultural landscape (i.e., the social catchment to the west), which have elements of environment, culture and community and together are a cornerstone of sustainable rural development.

Eligibility

The following placements have been developed with the international partners of Grampus, over the last 8 years. The CHAT Leonardo Da Vinci trainer exchange provides funded exchange visits for UK trainers to visit organisations in other European countries, to exchange best practice and to establish new contacts and partnerships for future cooperation. Applicants must be professionals in vocational education and training and whose day to day role include the design or delivery of training, professional development and careers guidance, so teachers, trainers, vocational training staff and guidance counsellors can apply, as well as people working within the heritage sector involved with environment, archaeology and traditional craft skills.

The Funding

The placements are 1 week long and are funded by the EU Leonardo Da Vinci scheme, so return UK flights, insurance, accommodation, food (3 meals a day) and airport transfers in the receiving country are covered.

The countries in which CHAT placements are available are Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Romania, and Slovakia. Spaces fill quickly so to avoid disappointment, contact us to discuss any of the placements..

Traditional pottery Bulgaria	Velia, Italy. Site left open for public to walk around

Bulgaria Partner: Devetaki Plateau Association, Velislava (Velis) Chilingirova Dates: 17th - 24th August 2013 Placement Itinerary: A walking tour of Sofia, A visit to Rousse and the Regional Museum as well as visiting the site where our GrEASE group work. A drive to the Devetaki Plateau to see waterfalls, limestone area, visit to the Roman baths site the EASE group work on. A chance to go to the Open Air Museum, Etara, home of the local Crafts Fair. A chance to see how heritage is displayed and taught to the public and how museums and professionals engage with the public. A chance to meet professionals in field archaeology, museum directors and local traditional crafts people. More information about the Association is available on their website

Cyprus Partner: Kato Drys Dates: Group 1 10 - 16th June Group 2 4th - 10th November Placement Itinerary: The proposed itinerary will see both groups focusing on traditional skills in a Mediterranean village setting, including craft skills with many local artistic elements – there is some contemporary adaptation of these, with new designs, etc. The period coincides with the training of vocational students – you will observe these students and join in their training – with a series of local vocational trainers.

Czech Republic Partner: Apple Farm, Rudolf Zidek Dates: 15th - 22nd July 2013 Placement Itinerary: Self sustainable small holding. Horticultural and environmental activities at the farm (2-3 days), visits to interesting places depending on groups interests, visiting local towns of Litomysl and Policka (castle, gardens, museums, local brewery) and last day in Prague. A bit more: The farm has its own orchards, herb garden, strawberry spiral, vegetable plots. An amphitheatre built in previous years provides an area for entertainment and outdoor classes. Please see the DESIRE page for more information.

Finland Partner: Kierikki Stone Age Centre Dates: 23rd - 29th July 2013 Placement Itinerary: Working on the excavation and working in the Centre. There may also be a chance to discuss the education programme and see how it compares to UK organisations and exchange ideas about best ways to inform the public and students. During the weekend the group are there, the annual Stone Age Fair will be on, so participants will be able to take part in the activities during the fair. A bit more: A Stone Age Village allows visitors to see the techniques used and the materials utilised for tools. There are reconstructed houses which have been built using archaeological data. Click here to visit their website.

Germany Partner: Bildungsstatte Naturpark Dubener Heide Dates: 25th - 31st July 2013 Placement Itinerary: The itinerary could include looking at the land management of the nature park. The group may also see the working relationships between owners of land in the nature park and how different organisations manage the woodland differently within the boundaries of the nature park- government owned versus community owned. There may also be the chance to see renewable energy at work, with the group visiting a business that runs using biogas. There will also be visits to and discussion about community run projects within the nature park. The group will have the chance to take part in and see the Wood festival in which local artists use local wood and materials to create sculptures. The wood used are pieces that are otherwise rejected for industrial use, so they are used in the festival. The itinerary can be organised to include the groups interests and can include farming, woodland management, traditional skills and others. For an example of the work Bildungsstatte Naturpark does in the area, please see the DESIRE page.

Iceland Partner: Skalanes Nature Reserve Dates: 28th July - 3rd August 2013 Placement Itinerary: Can be tailored to the groups interests. A bit more: Skalanes is situated within its own 1250 hectare nature reserve surrounded by fjords, allowing the study of different habitats, surveys of the area. There are goals towards self sufficiency and they are currently developing a small holding. Skalanes is a site that is set up for research study and activities, such as tourism, ecology, bird colonies, Eider farming, stone walling and plenty more. More information can be found on the Skalanes website.

Ireland Partner: Sylviron Dates: 25th June - 1st July 2013 Placement Itinerary: The group will visit the site where our student group work, using traditional wood working techniques and equipment to help construct a wooden building. The site has other buildings that have been built by past students which the group will see. The group will also be taken around the area to visit other local wood based projects as well as experiencing the cultural heritage through various site/museum visits. This is TBC. A bit more: The placement will be hosted by a woodworker and forester whose projects include "From Tree To Timber Products". Working with students, the site has its own little woodland and there are a lot of items on the site that have been made by the owner- gates, furniture, bridges etc. For more information about the site and area, please see the TICATEC page.

Romania Partner: Satul Verde Dates: 2nd - 8th September Placement Itinerary : The proposed itinerary includes the Apuseni mountains, the Aries river to Girda de Sus and briefly visiting the wooden church undergoing restoration, visit a local woodworker and have a go making an alpenhorn. The group will then visit a local loom weaver and review her textiles, cultural excursions to local towns and their museums, Archaeological sites will be visited and have a discussion about the link between archaeology and traditional skills, a visit to the village of Remet to see a Satul Verde project to restore a vernacular building as a venue for training and as a museum, sampling local food. A bit more: The association was formed in 2010 and its main purpose is to promote the Romanian culture and traditions as well as the less known rural areas. To achieve its purpose, the association undertakes the following activities: organisation of camps, festivals, congresses, conferences, seminars, courses, workshops, competitions, exhibitions, fairs plus much more. More information about the association can be found on its website.

Slovakia Partner: Ipelsky Union Dates: TBC later September Placement Itinerary: The proposed itinerary will see the group taking part in a number of activities over 7 days, including helping building restoration, lime painting, wood carving, visiting towns and cities and working with the student group that is scheduled to be out at the same time. A bit more: The group will be staying in the area of Sahy, on the Hungarian border. More information about the partner can be found here.

Czech Republic - Bark	Germany - Woodland management

 

If you or your organisation would benefit from taking part in a CHAT placement, including to a country that is not listed above, please contact us to discuss the available opportunities. The application form is available to download here.

NOTE: Participants on all of our placements will now require a European Health Insurance CARD (EHIC). CLICK HERE to visit the external website and apply for your EHIC online.

 

Grampus Heritage and Training Limited Ashgill, Threapland, Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 2EL, England Telephone: 016973 21516 Fax: 016973 23040 Email: enquiries@grampusheritage.co.uk