The untold stories of the nation’s heritage are the focus of a new photography initiative, launched this week by English Heritage and Photoworks. Budding and established photographers – aged between 13 and 25 – are invited by the conservation charity and the contemporary photography platform to share images of heritage that they feel has been either forgotten or overlooked. ‘Untold Heritage’ will highlight the stories that get left out of the history books and aims to amplify youth voices in our current national debate about the future of heritage.

Free workshops, led by award-winning photographers Annia Joslin, will support participants while four exceptional young photographers will be given the opportunity to train their lenses on some of the country’s most iconic historic sites.

Dominique Bouchard, Head of Education and Interpretation at English Heritage, said:

'What we commemorate from the past is a hotly contested question, today more than ever. Each generation has its own definition of heritage but in the current debate, the views of the young need to be heard. We’re now asking young people what heritage means to them. Send us your photographs – and surprise us.'

Juliette Buss, Learning and Engagement Consultant, Photoworks, said:

'The project will provide a platform for young people to share what ‘heritage’ means to them through one of the most accessible means - photography. The works made and collected through Untold Heritage will be a window onto the heritage of the future: the heritage that we will pass on to future generations, and that future generations will inherit from us.

'The project will also be an important aspect of Photoworks’ 25th Anniversary celebrations and the Photoworks Festival this September, both of which focus on and seek to address ‘Alternative Narratives’ in photography.'

Untold Heritage’s aim is to provide a platform for young people’s view of what heritage means to them. That definition of heritage can be a broad one and can encompass home or the wider community, personal stories or national ones, the day-to-day or the unusual, the overlooked or the forgotten. 

As part of the project, a series of free online workshops – on 17 and 31 July, 14 and 28 August – led by award-winning photographers will support participants while four photographers will be offered residencies at some of English Heritage's most famous sites.

Untold Heritage is part of Shout Out Loud, English Heritage’s national youth engagement programme. Shout Out Loud is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Kick The Dust programme. Untold Heritage is additional Kick The Dust activity funded by DCMS through the Youth Accelerator Fund.

Share your Untold Heritage images via social media with with #untoldheritage and tag @ehshoutoutloud (Instagram) @EH_ShoutOutLoud (Twitter).

For more information, visit the Shout Out Loud website.