Community ‘snubbed’ by private council event ‘shrouded in mystery’, campaigners claim

Members of the Save Our Record Office (SORO) committee in Lowestoft. L to R: Mike Sims, Andy Pearce, Ian Robb, Yvonne Eade, Carole Byatt, Trevor Garrod, Marilyn Adamson and Bob Collis. Picture: SORO (Image: Archant)

But a campaign group have hit out at the events being held at towns across the county – claiming the private event in Lowestoft is a snub to the community.

The Time Capsule 2019 initiative will see time capsules being buried at nine locations across Suffolk on February 28 to mark the building of 'a major new heritage archive centre' for the county by the Ipswich-based 'The Hold' super archive project, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

But the Save Our Record Office (SORO) group in Lowestoft have hit out at the confirmed public events at Bury St Edmunds, Felixstowe, Framlingham and Eye as they claim Lowestoft's event is 'shrouded in mystery.'

Bob Collis, chairman of the SORO group, who are campaigning to prevent the Lowestoft archives being transferred to 'The Hold' later this year, said: 'In common with the transformed service at Lowestoft Record Office, Suffolk County Council are again thumbing their noses at the community of the second biggest town in Suffolk.'

A Suffolk Archives spokesman said: 'Time capsules are being buried at nine locations across Suffolk on February 28 to mark the 900th anniversary of the oldest document in the Record Office collections, the building of a major new heritage archive centre for the county and the start of an exciting new chapter in Suffolk's history.

'This snapshot of Suffolk will allow future generations to look back and see what the county was like 100 years ago.

'The project reflects the Record Office's mission to preserve the present for the benefit of future generations as well as safeguarding documents from the past.'

Public events are being held in Bury, Felixstowe, Framlingham, Eye and Haverhill, however 'some of the other locations are not suitable for large scale public attendance,' according to the spokesman.

'For example the Ipswich site at 'The Hold' is a working construction site, and some other locations are on private grounds. In the case of Lowestoft, the capsule is being buried within the curtilage of a working office building at OrbisEnergy during office hours.

'We have invited the local community for the Lowestoft event through Lowestoft Town Council, Waveney District Council, Oulton Broad Primary School, as well as representatives from the Heritage Action Zone, Making Waves Together project, CEFAS and Lowestoft Rising.'

More information about the events can be found at www.suffolkarchives.co.uk/time-capsule-2019/