Homeless heritage aims to present an anthropological study of homelessness, based on collaboration with homeless individuals as part of two geographically distinct projects in Bristol (UK) and York (UK). The book builds on previously published research undertaken by Rachel Kiddey and John Schofield, focused on Bristol’s ‘Turbo Island’ and York’s ‘The Pavilion’, methodologically comparable collaborative homeless heritage projects (Kiddey & Schofield Reference Kiddey and Schofield2011, Reference Kiddey and Schofield2015). It develops many of the key themes from these previous publications, including memory and identity, therapeutic archaeology and applied archaeology. Homeless heritage presents the qualitative anthropological data from these projects to explore the homeless landscapes of Bristol and York, seeking to assess the ‘therapeutic’ impact of collaborative heritage projects on homeless individuals in the UK.
The research and evaluation methodologies presented are not, however, limited to anthropology. Rather they involve methodological elements from numerous social sciences including archaeology, ethnography, sociology and psychology. The multi-disciplinary approach of this research means that the book bridges the academic divides between these and other disciplines, including geography and politics. Kiddey has written an academic book that forces the reader to confront cultural and social attitudes attached to homelessness, “creating a platform from which negative stereotypes of homelessness could be challenged and even deconstructed” (p. 135). It also challenges the normative writing styles of academic publications, switching between autobiographical, first person, observational, conversational field notes and academic prose. For the reader this can be confusing as the presentation of the research does not fit into standard normative academic third-person presentation. For example, the beginnings of many of the chapters, including the introduction (Chapter 1), ‘Welcome to the Croft!’ (Chapter 2), ‘Homelessness in a global historical context’ (Chapter 4) and ‘An ethic of care’ (Chapter 5) are autobiographical in nature. This self-reflective approach provides some perspective on Kiddey’s research. The parts written in the first person are anecdotal, deeply personal and often highly emotive in language and detail, and as such, the presentation of this research is politicised, indicating possible researcher biases. While not a traditional academic approach, this does allow Kiddey to challenge conventional viewpoints and encourage the reader to confront their own actions and social behaviour. Homeless heritage questions the nature of collaboration, participation and inclusion, and the hierarchy of normative archaeology research practice in the fields of community and public archaeology.
In parts Homeless heritage is repetitive, particularly in Kiddey’s discussions regarding the dissemination of research, and could have been reduced in length by removing some of the self-reflections or personal autobiographical material. The final chapters, ‘Applied heritage’ (Chapter 9) and ‘Conclusion’ (Chapter 10) attempt to pull together disparate research elements of ethnography and archaeology to produce two distinct themes: personal impact and political impact. The latter is particularly successfully illustrated in the section ‘Homelessness policies from past to present’. The conclusions draw out themes from the observational and conversational data, and the author’s personal experiences of collaborating with homeless individuals. Some of these conclusions are therefore anecdotal and suppositional, as illustrated by the section titles on ‘Practical ways in which the homeless heritage project helped’ and ‘Therapeutic outcomes’. These sections fail to draw on the detailed evidence available in data presented in earlier chapters, and require more information from different stages of the project in order to back up the interpretations. As a result, the research has unexplored potential, in part due to the organic nature of the project and the lack of any formal evaluation strategy. Unexplored themes include asking whether the research style presented here offers a model for best practice and whether the therapeutic value of collaborative heritage projects is sustainable. The projects presented are ground-breaking for public, collaborative and applied heritage, and there is clearly scope for further research by the author on the social and political impact of collaborative heritage projects in general.
Homeless heritage demonstrates the application and impact of heritage in ‘real world’ contexts, in what Kiddey terms as ‘applied heritage’; a term widely used in the field of history since the early twentieth century (Conard 2002). Kiddey defines applied heritage as “participatory cultural heritage work [that] might explicitly set out to function as therapeutic social intervention with marginalised communities” (p. 160). Homeless heritage demonstrates applied heritage’s impact upon politics and legislation, not only relating to homelessness but also wider socio-political issues. Kiddey demonstrates that collaborative heritage projects have political value, including providing a voice to marginalised communities and potentially developing evidence-based policy and legislation to support homeless individuals in the UK. This research has implications for the wider impact of heritage, and this is something few archaeological academics have tackled through evidence-based research before. This book challenges the reader and the profession to reconsider the ‘real world’ impact of heritage, and its wider application to marginalised communities.
