About Paston Footprints
We help to bring people together to experience connections with 'Paston Country' (a.k.a. Norfolk). Celebrating the 600th anniversary since the first Paston correspondence, we launched in 2018 and are still going strong. Co-production is at the heart of our work with, to date, over 60 Norfolk and national organizations. We continue to welcome individuals and groups to get in touch to join the Paston Footprints mission.
We are grateful for support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, UEA's PVC Impact fund, Bishop of Norwich First Nature Prize and North Norfolk District Council HAZ funding.
The Directors are Dr Karen Smyth, Associate Professor of Literature at UEA and Dr Rob Knee (educationalist, local historian and Paston re-enactor). A dedicated walks team brings a range of expertise to the project. There is also a large team of wonderful and diverse volunteers, who have contributed to (and continue to) the vision, design, and delivery of engaging with Paston heritage. Research underpinning and arising from the project can be explored here.
The Paston Footprints Mission
-
to entice and empower 21st century people to become curious about, and to participate in, the Paston story.
-
to connect the legends, letters and landmarks of the Pastons through heritage walks and cycle rides.
-
to be the first facilitation of bringing together professional and community based heritage, educational, wellbeing, creative, religious, commercial, leisure and tourism sectors to promote the globally significant Paston heritage.
Image: Actors from Collisions Theatre group, re-enacting Paston lives in the grounds of Oxnead Hall.
Invest in People
-
through active engagement with Paston heritage, enabling new audiences to participate. Currently our focus is with:
-
Creative Health and Wellbeing - mind, body and soul groups.
-
Families, schools and youth groups.
-
Experience-seekers (locals, regional, national and international markets).
We promote passion for heritage by enhancing opportunities for social wellbeing, community investment in local heritage, stimulating a sense of belonging, and in the active physical engagement with the heritage through trail walking and cycling.
Image: Heritage Hunters from The Millennium Library, making 'Rosie's' Plaques' for the Paston Women, at St Peter's, Hungate, in Norwich.
Creative Access to Paston heritage
-
opening access to seeing and understanding the Paston heritage, from the archives to privately owned buildings (through digitisation and 3D modelling, with accompanying interpretative scaffolding and deeper learning exercises);
-
lasting all-age learning activities – in churches, in interpretation centres, and online;
-
schools’ impact – enabling schools’ to be active research centres, enabling teachers to use the Paston heritage more prominently through learning resources.
Image: Animation figure of Margaret Paston (by Craig Smith) outside Caister Castle (photograph by Charlotte Knee).
Contact Us
Contact Rob and Karen at:
Interact with us on Facebook:
paston600
Talk to us on X (formerly twitter): @pastonfootprint
Follow us on Instagram
@pastonfootprints
Watch more Paston videos:
Meet the Walks Team
Paston Heritage
Paston Footprints' Director: Dr Rob Knee.
Strategy, history lead and community delivery.
Rob has a background in education, training and research at both a local and a national level. Rob delivers costumed talks in role to audiences across Norfolk and Suffolk and is a published poet. He was the former Chair of the Paston Heritage Society.
University of East Anglia
Paston Footprints' Director: Dr Karen Smyth.
Strategy, storytelling lead and project management.
Associate Professor in Medieval and Early Modern Literature, UEA. Former posts at the University of Nottingham, Queen's Belfast and Harvard University. Karen publishes, enjoys teaching literature and engaging in Paston research impact work.
Marketing & Communications
Freelance Consultant: Emily Parker.
Norfolk County Council
NCC's Environment and Community team: Paul Thorogood (pictured), Chris Brough and Matt Hayward.
Children's Resources
Paston Fooptrints' Freelance Education Consultant.
Georgia Knee, is the director for the children's activities and learning materials.
ThisIsPaston - The Paston Heritage Portal
Peter Stibbons, PHS trustee, is Digital Director for Paston Footprints and editor of thisispaston.co.uk our sister site, which acts as the Paston web portal for community researchers.
Drama Director
Paston Footprints' Drama Director:
Dr Holly Maples. is Professor of Theatre at the University of Essex and Director of Collisions Theatre Company.
Character Animator
Craig Smith, former student of Paston College and Graduate of Derby University, has created the Paston character animations, drone piloting and video editing.
3D Graphics
James Mindham, a 3D Graphics artist, has created the digital reconstructions of the Paston buildings.
Walks Photographer
Charlotte Knee.
Walks Photographer
Glenn Hands is a UEA Landscape History graduate and a photographer (Sports, Events, Drone, Street, Landscape, and Portrait). See evocative image.
Evaluation Toolkit
Sophie Cabot, freelance evaluation consultant. NRO Community Archivist, Chair of Hungate Medieval Art and leader of Norwich Young Archaeologists Club. Former Senior Projects Officer of the Marriott's Way Heritage Trail.
Paston Walk Project Partners
