Sounds of the South West

Gloucestershire Archives is taking part in the Sounds of the South West (SotSW) project, which is a partnership between heritage organisations in South West England with the purpose of preserving rare and at-risk audio recordings.

Thanks to a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Gloucestershire Archives and 23 other heritage organisations in the region will be working to safeguard unique audio materials from the past 100 years, including oral histories, endangered dialects, recordings documenting environmental change, community memories, traditional music and performance, and so much more.

Many of these recordings exist on ageing reel‑to‑reel tapes and other obsolete media, putting them at risk of being lost forever without urgent intervention.

The project will involve the production of high-quality digitized versions of these audio collections, which will be made accessible online. This will open new ways for people to discover the voices and stories that have shaped South West communities for generations.

The project will also create volunteering opportunities and community engagement activities designed to encourage local participation and broaden access to the region’s audio heritage.

As this three-year project develops, we will share our progress on this webpage. Watch this space to keep informed on Gloucestershire Archives’ contributions to this project.

With thanks to the National Lottery Heritage Fund and to National Lottery players.