A composite image of a protest against a yellow background with a banner that reads In Peace and Revolution

Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the project kicked off in April 2025 and runs until December 2026.

The project sees Clydesider working with community groups and volunteers to capture and celebrate the stories of local community activists and campaigners, past and present.

These community heroes of the past include suffragettes, rent strikers and Red Clydesiders who campaigned for better wages, living conditions and votes for all. 

In more recent years there are the founders of local credit unions and quality social housing; environmental and rural activists protecting local greenspaces and common land; people who’ve set up support networks to help those impacted by unemployment; peace campaigners; football fans who saved their clubs, plus many more unsung heroes and heroines.

To capture these inspiring stories, the project is offering the opportunity for volunteers to learn multimedia skills including photography, filmmaking, podcasting and writing, alongside heritage skills like oral history interviewing, archival research and contributing to Wikipedia.

We’re also working with local community groups to explore themes of activism through a series of creative workshops, and hosting guided walks celebrating natural heritage and local history across West Dunbartonshire. 

We’ll be sharing work from this project on our website and our social media channels over the coming months, so keep an eye out for updates.

As part of the project, we’re also facilitating and developing the West Dunbartonshire Heritage Network, to strengthen connections across groups and organisations promoting local heritage. 

And, excitingly, we’re coordinating West Dunbartonshire’s first ever area-wide heritage festival, Our Stories, in May 2026

For more information about the project, contact Kayleigh Hirst, Clydesider Heritage Lead: [email protected] / 07919 176507