Penny Duggan
In the relatively short time Penny has worked at Bexley Archives, she has made a significant contribution to both the service and the communities it supports. Penny joined Bexley Archives as an Archives Officer in August 2024 after beginning her distance-learning MA in Archives and Records Management three months earlier. Since then, she has balanced the demands of postgraduate study with an impressive range of professional achievements, combining collections management, researcher support and digital development with an ambitious programme of public engagement. Over the past eighteen months she has shown that she is equally at home improving the day-to-day work of the archive service as she is finding new ways to engage people with their local history. Her work has strengthened the service internally while also raising its profile across the borough through an ambitious programme of public engagement.
Over the last year alone, Penny has engaged with more than 1,000 people through guided walks, talks, reminiscence sessions, historic house tours and community events, many of whom would not otherwise have encountered Bexley Archives. Rather than relying on familiar stories, she has researched and developed new walks exploring overlooked aspects of Bexley's history, including memories of Danson Park, agricultural workers in Lamorbey and the impact of the General Strike in Erith. She has delivered eight guided walks, each attracting around 20–25 participants, and every walk has been fully booked. When she introduced a pre-Christmas walk around Broadway in Bexleyheath, demand was so great that she added a second walk on the same day.
Penny has been equally successful in taking archives into the community. She has represented Bexley Archives at three community events, speaking to around 600 people, and delivered guided tours during two historic house open days, welcoming approximately 120 visitors. For Black History Month she planned and led a reminiscence session in Thamesmead, creating an exhibition from archive material that encouraged participants to share their own memories and experiences.
Recognising an opportunity to reach people who might never visit an archive, Penny suggested introducing reminiscence sessions at Bexley Council's new Ageing Well Hub. Since February she has delivered regular sessions using archive material to encourage conversation, share local history and record participants' own memories. The success of this work led to her being invited to develop a similar programme for Bexley Buddies, delivering reminiscence sessions in GP surgeries as part of a wider initiative supporting health and wellbeing. She has also begun delivering talks in assisted living settings, continuing to develop new audiences for the archive service.
The impact of Penny's outreach is already being seen. Participants have contributed new ideas for research, visited the archives for the first time and donated material to the collections. Following one recent guided walk, a participant donated the records of Erith Public Hall and offered further material, while another attendee offered the records of a local dance school. These are clear examples of Penny's ability to build lasting relationships with local communities and strengthen the collections through engagement.
Alongside this public-facing work, Penny has made an important contribution to the development of the archive service itself. She has supported the migration to a new archives management system to improve digital access to the collections, undertaken a structured review of the off-site store to improve the organisation and retrieval of archive material, supported academic researchers using the collections and worked with a visual artist to develop a projection artwork for Danson House based on archival research. These projects demonstrate the breadth of her skills and her willingness to take on responsibility across all aspects of archive work.
What stands out most is Penny's initiative. She does not wait for opportunities to come to her; she identifies them and develops them into successful projects that benefit both the archive service and the communities it serves. In a relatively short time she has built productive partnerships, reached new audiences, improved access to collections and demonstrated the wider value of archives within local government. Penny's work over the past eighteen months demonstrates exactly the qualities this award seeks to recognise: professional initiative, innovation, collaboration and a commitment to making archives relevant and accessible to wider audiences.
Supporting statement from Paul Fisher, Manager:
Penny is an outstanding new professional in Bexley Archives. She brings and incredible amount of energy, enthusiasm and commitment to everything she does in service of improving, developing and making accessible our collections. Penny is equally as driven by the challenge of organising our off-site collections to improve their accessibility, as she is by creating and delivering an outstanding outreach programme that engages residents with the borough’s history and identity. Some of Penny’s outstanding achievements include:
Developing a programme of walks and talks to engage the public and draw the biggest audiences we have ever had.
Penny has quickly developed a network of professional contacts, all keen to work with her, that are helping her to deliver an excellent programme that has become unexpectedly popular with large audiences
Developing an archives reminiscence project that is a valued part of a key programme we are delivering with the NHS to prevent and delay the onset of frailty in over 50s in Sidcup.
Managing the move from our current Archives system to a new supplier to unlock the engagement potential of our collections through digital channels
Collaborating with a visual artist to develop a new piece of projection artwork, displayed on Danson House, using the archives to uncover images and information to inform the creative process
Supporting academic researchers to fully explore and use the archives effectively to support their work
Undertaking a structured review of our off-site store to improve the way it is organised, significantly improving the time it takes to locate and retrieve archives.
I am deeply grateful to Penny for her excellent work and I very much looking forward to seeing her continue to grow as an archives professional.
Supporting Summary of Achievements
Public engagement
Developed and delivered 8 guided heritage walks, each attracting around 20–25 participants and all fully booked.
Created walks exploring under-represented aspects of Bexley's history, including Danson Park memories, agricultural workers in Lamorbey and the General Strike in Erith.
A new pre-Christmas Broadway walk proved so popular that an additional walk was added on the same day.
Reaching new audiences
Delivered 7 reminiscence sessions for around 70–140 participants, including sessions for Bexley Council's Ageing Well Hub and Bexley Buddies' programme in GP surgeries.
Planned and delivered a Black History Month reminiscence session in Thamesmead, creating an exhibition to encourage participants to share their own memories.
Presented 4 talks to community groups, reaching around 80–120 people.
Delivered guided tours to approximately 120 visitors across two historic house open days.
Represented Bexley Archives at 3 community events, engaging with around 600 people.
Approximate total public engagement over the past year: more than 1,000 people.
Measurable impact
Outreach activities have generated new archive donations, including the records of Erith Public Hall and a local dance school, with further material offered by participants.
Reminiscence sessions have generated new research ideas and encouraged participants to visit Bexley Archives.
Professional practice
Helped lead the migration to a new archives management system to improve digital access to the collections.
Undertook a structured review of off-site archive storage, improving organisation and retrieval.
Supported academic researchers in making effective use of the collections.
Collaborated with a visual artist to develop projection artwork for Danson House using archival research.
Partnerships
Penny has developed successful partnerships with:
Bexley Council Ageing Well Hub
Bexley Buddies
NHS social prescribing programme
Local community organisations
Heritage partners supporting guided walks and historic houses
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