Year 8s record oral histories at St Mary & St John Church

This week, year 8 museum council students headed down the road to record the stories of a range of people who have connections and experiences of the building of St Mary & St John Church. 

This well-known church on the Cowley Road is celebrating its 150th year, and was recently awarded a Heritage Lottery Grant to explore its rich history in the community. As the nearest local museum, the Rumble Museum was asked to take part in recording the stories.

Year Eights were given some training in how to interview people and collect their stories, and they put their new skills into practice on Wednesday afternoon! Visitors of a range of ages and backgrounds told the year eights about how the church building was important in their lives, whether through religious worship, local organisations such as Oxford Mutual Aid, artistic and structural connections, and more. Students were also given a tour of the church and graveyard.

Over the coming months, the students’ recordings of stories will be archived and made available to the public.