Schoolchildren across Northumberland will now be able to view a range of important archives online thanks to a new website. 

The Learning and Educational Archives Resources from Northumberland (LEARN) website has been developed by Northumberland Archives, thanks to a £5k grant from The National Archives. 

The digital learning platform was developed with the help of nine schools in the county who were part of a pilot scheme to test the site and develop content. 

Created using documents from the archives the platform focuses on archives relating to four themes:  
 

Crime & Punishment 

Victorians 

World War I 

World War II 
 

Each theme includes suggested resources, lesson plans and activities for teachers to download and use in class. The project is aimed at Key Stage 2 to life-long learners.   

There is also an option for users to upload their own resources, including examples of students' work and lessons plans as inspiration for others.   

Sue Wood, Head of Archives said: “This has been a first for the archives team to work collaboratively with schools to create something which can help bring history to life for teachers and learners. 

“We have worked really closely with them to understand the type of documents which would be useful and are now able to provide them in an easy to access way to benefit pupils in their learning.” 

The Duchess’s Community High School, Alnwick was one of the schools who took part in the pilot scheme. Rosie Bush, Culture and Community Co-ordinator at the school said: "The LEARN website provides excellent resources and lesson ideas which can be tailored for a wide variety of year groups. 

"Using archived materials has brought lessons alive and made teaching big topics more relevant and localised for our young people." 

To find out more go to https://www.northumberlandarchives.com/learn/