BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM INTERPRETATION PLAN January 2016 CONTENTS 1. OBJECTIVES 3 2. VISION 4 3. INTERPRETIVE APPROACH 6 4. TARGET AUDIENCES 7 5. POSITIONING 10 6. EXHIBITION AREAS 12 7. THEMES AND NARRATIVE 15 8. KEY MESSAGES AND LEARNING OUTCOMES 17 9. VISITOR EXPERIENCE 31 10. SAMPLE CONTENT 35 11. SCRIPT STRATEGY 40 12. MEDIA STRATEGY 41 APPENDICES 42 APPENDIX I – AUDIENCE CONSULTATION REPORT 43 APPENDIX II – SUPPORTING RESEARCH 56 APPENDXI III – CONTENT PLAN 88 BIBLIOGRAPHY 94 BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM 2 OBJECTIVES The Interpretation Plan complements other elements of the strategic vision being developed by the team at Bromley Council. The dual priorities of the Biggin Hill is the most famous of all the Interpretation Plan are to represent the unique stories of the site accurately centres of the Battle of Britain and the and effectively, and to help visitors to get as much enjoyment and learning memory of its role is etched deeply in our from them as possible. history. This stretch of flattened fields and The new museum will: conglomeration of huts, barracks, administration buildings, hangars and • Create a space that represents what is unique about the history and stories surrounding the chapel, Biggin Hill airfield and Biggin Hill itself in workshops is something rather special. It is an engaging and enjoyable way the heart of our very existence as a nation. • Have a broad mix of interpretive techniques, engaging people through a variety of learning styles Bob Ogley 1990: 154 • Appeal to the emotions, help people to empathise and present relatable stories. This will help people to make connections to their own lives and see those who fought in the World Wars and those who worked to support that military action as relatable people. It will encourage them Biggin Hill Memorial Museum will be a new museum at the site of St to consider remembrance and war as living, relevant issues George’s Chapel, Biggin Hill. • Have the ability to refresh stories in a way that is appropriate to relevant content, costs, likely available resources and visitor appetite As well as a new building, the heritage site will encompass St George’s • Have a considered tone of voice that is appropriate for a site with a Chapel; a working chapel built in memorial to the ‘Few’ who fought in the memorial function Battle of Britain. The chapel has a memorial garden and the site will have • Present these stories freshly in a way that feels modern, dynamic and sight lines to the airfield. The site is not currently a tourist destination, and elegant attracts a small number of specialist visitors. The chapel is active, and conducts services each weekend. Throughout this plan, Barker Langham will refer to key pieces of research as supporting evidence for the thinking. These are indicated within the text, as The new museum will pull all of these threads together coherently and follows: sensitively. It will appeal to new audiences and encourage return visits from a local audience. < Audience consultation, General Users > < Best practice visits, Bentley Priory > BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM 3 VISION Tangible heritage: Biggin Hill; inspiring generations, • Biggin Hill is one of the oldest aerodromes in Britain remembering the Few and honouring the and is still in use. Many original buildings and structures Many. from the Second World War and before remain. In 1993 the London Borough of Bromley designated Biggin Hill a Conservation Area • St George’s Chapel is Grade II listed and is an excellent example of the post Second World War era church Mission design pioneered by Sir Edward Maufe The chapel has high artistic interest including a Gathering, protecting and making known the stories of Biggin Hill • and communicating its significant role in shaping the modern world. collection of exceptional stained glasses windows by Hugh Easton Overarching Message • The chapel and museum provide an important place A key overarching message is: for worship and acts as a site of remembrance to those who served in the Battle of Britain. ‘Ordinary people; extraordinary lives’ Intangible heritage: Other key stories include: • Major innovations in aviation telecommunications • A local story with global impact including radar were developed at Biggin Hill prior to • Many people working towards the same goal changed history the Second World War • During the Battle of Britain, Biggin Hill witnessed some Statement of Significance of the most significant aerial battles in history, with Biggin Hill played a pivotal part in altering the course of the Second famous fighter pilots engaged in daily combat in the World War through its role in the Battle of Britain. Today Biggin Hill’s skies above South East England and on the ground, story and heritage stands testament to its internationally crucial role occasions of great bravery by many during the war and the site remains an icon for local, national and • The chapel’s history is testament to the sentiment of international audiences. national pride and remembrance having been funded by the public through a campaign led by Winston Churchill BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM 4 Visitors Primary target audiences are: • Families • Schools • Retired and older audiences (local and from further afield) It is also important that the museum meet the needs of secondary audiences, namely: • Local people within Biggin Hill and, more widely, within the Borough of Bromley • Visitors from the South East, particularly those with an interest in related heritage sites, such as Chartwell or Battle of Britain memorials and museums • Tourists on a heritage trail that includes Chartwell or related Battle of Britain sites • World War Two veterans who want to revisit the station where they served • Relatives of people who served and/or died at Biggin Hill; people whose service is commemorated in the chapel • People from various countries who had nationals in squadrons that served at Biggin Hill • Local people who support regeneration and have pride in their area • Volunteers • International and national tourists. While the museum should appeal to those that have specialist knowledge and/or were alive during the Battle of Britain, it should also engage those who have little prior knowledge of the site or this conflict. BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM 5 INTERPRETIVE APPROACH Engagement Pacing The aim of the interpretation will be to help visitors to engage with the key Careful thought will be given to the pacing of the story and display at Biggin narratives at Biggin Hill Memorial Museum. It will encourage an empathetic Hill Memorial Museum to maximise engagement and minimise fatigue. response to familiar stories, help visitors to have a broader and deeper understanding of those stories and reveal untold or rarely told narratives. The The museum will layer stories, allowing for more detailed investigation for museum will emphasise the uniqueness of these stories to Biggin Hill, their those who are less hurried. Interpretation will be varied so that there is a importance to Britain’s national story and their continuing relevance today. good mix of learning and engagement styles and changes of pace <Best practice visit, RAF Hendon. IWM Duxford>. The interpretation will allow for Interpretive Principles hurried visits, longer visits, return visits and a variety of levels of interest and The interpretation and storytelling will: expertise. There should be some, carefully managed, repetition so that content is targeted at a number of different audiences. • Draw out connections between the different themes of the story – innovation and experimentation, bravery, remembering and the Aesthetic Approach linking thread of people and place The aesthetic approach at Biggin Hill Memorial Museum will be elegant and restrained without being sombre. Digital, interactive media will be confined to • Personalise these themes by telling the stories of named individuals wherever possible <Best practice visit, IWM Duxford> hand held devices and Apps. Making use of excellent archival film and audio resources, there will be some sound and projection, with care taken to avoid • Explore why and how we remember the bleed of sound between different areas. Media design will make use of • Separate the memorial function from the museum function <Best the aesthetics of archival material and historic objects without pastiche. practice visit, IWM Duxford, Capel-le-Ferne>, but take up content threads of remembering and societal responsibility within the display Storytelling Approach • Zone interpretive areas to encompass different paces and The museum will tell a thematic story, with content organised logically experiences – experiential areas, areas with little written through time across a series of thematic zones. The narrative structure allows interpretation, interactive and high-density zones and large object the telling of key stories well and stories that do not fit the structure can be zones or vistas <Best practice visit, Bletchley Park> taken up in future temporary displays or in online or other add-on content. BIGGIN HILL MEMORIAL MUSEUM 6 TARGET AUDIENCES Scope of Consultation • Teachers (primary and secondary) Consultation with a broad range of audience groups has been carried out as • Friends of the Chapel part of the interpretive planning process (see Appendix I). These sessions • International visitors were used to explore existing knowledge of Biggin Hill and appetite for the stories that the museum has to tell, and to explore key strategic questions Consultation has revealed some key issues that the project team has used to surrounding the presentation of stories at Biggin Hill Memorial Museum. inform and test our ideas. Consultation also explored and discussed visiting habits and potential visitor experience at the new museum. Content and Interpretive Approach There is, unsurprisingly, a huge variety of existing knowledge. Some young Inevitably, different target audiences – and indeed different individuals within people who are still in the school system have a reasonably strong awareness target audience groups – will have varying levels of interest and engagement of the Battle of Britain, the Second World War and interwar period being and conflicting opinions about what is important.