Open Letter on Cuts and working together.

[BAJR]

To add to this... here is the offer.

Dear Andy,

I have discussed this briefly with other members of the Rescue Committee and we would like to offer our Open Meeting on 2nd April as a possible venue for an initial meeting to discuss the points you make and the wider issues involved - of course time is rather short but as we have the meeting already set up and the venue booked, it seems like an opportunity that should not be missed. E-mail is good but there's nothing like a face-to-face meeting to get things moving and to focus people's minds. If you agree, then please feel free to circulate the details to those on your list below (perhaps with some additions as suggested below). The details of the venue are on our website (www.rescue-archaeology.org.uk) but are, briefly:

Venue: Surrey History Centre, 130 Goldsworth Road, Woking, Surrey GU21 6ND
Time: Saturday 2nd April 2.00pm onwards (our AGM is from 1.00pm to 2.00pm)

We have also invited the newly appointed Heritage Alliance parliamentary liaison team (Sarah McCarthy and Henry Russell) to the meeting as their input could be very useful (having had considerable experience of banging our heads against the brick wall of government ignorance over the last twenty years or so we are very supportive of their role!). I should emphasise that this isn't an attempt by Rescue to hijack your initiative in any way but simply to move it on and to facilitate discussion.

Possible additions include (but should not be limited to):

Peter Hinton (IfA): peter.hinton@archaeologists.net
Don Henson (CBA & archaeology in education): donhenson@britarch.ac.uk
Paul Blinkhorn (Time Team and numerous community groups): paul.blinkhorn@ntlworld.com
Mark Pluciennik (Leicester University - Adult & Continuing education & distance learning): mzp1@leicester.ac.uk

If I come up with any other names I'll let you know.

Chris

and my response.... which may sound a bit ranty... it is a great offer... but to quote myself (before you read on)

By all means discuss it at the AGM open meeting, but discuss how the campaign is going, not how to start it.

I don't give a flying fck who is the voice... I really don't... as long as the jostling to the front stops. But this is about Archaeology - bot RESCUE, not IfA not CBA not BAJR or any other individual or group... it is Archaeology. If rescue speak as the Voice... they speak as us...

However, my reply is thus

This is a great offer however. I have two issues with this.

number one... its two weeks away... we should really have it in the bag by then
number two... only those organisations or individuals who are able to pay for a journey to Surrey, stay the night and travel back, or live within that area will be able to go. So I guess that's the IfA and CBA then perhaps someone from EH?. The meeting will miss out a massive constituency, it will become a meeting that none of us (and I use that term for all of us that won't be there) will have a voice in.

Look - we have already worked out the basics.

A template of the issue, the response and the importance of archaeology that mentions only Archaeology as the focus - we can agree on the using our entire membership and mailing lists pretty quickly

A campaign petition and organisation on 38 degrees

A connection with all our various media outlets (and between us we have lots from internet to tv from paper to electronic lists, from memberships to readerships, journalists, radio... )

A voice that has the backing of all those involved in archaeology that says

... All the archaeological organisations in the UK (yes Scotland to please) are coming out the trenches together and need your help to protect your heritage.


Although this is a kind offer, it will not be attended by the majority and the discussion and any decision is (without wanting to be too militant) will be limited to and by those that have - so far - been unable to act swiftly and decisively other than have another consultation meeting. At the CA conference I challenged all the speakers to have done something by the next conference... at this rate we may have a draft agenda looking at the potential to consider a consultation.

This is not some knee jerk campaign, it has been coming for years, we should know the argument already... and be ready to act with one single deadly blow.

By all means discuss it at the AGM open meeting, but discuss how the campaign is going, not how to start it.

no offence is intended - I just would hate to see this get bogged down.