The Sheila McKechnie Foundation and Falkirk Community Trust have worked together to create a unique history project that remembers a great campaigner
A UK-wide charity has teamed up with a Scottish local authority to celebrate the life and work of Falkirk born campaigner and former Shelter chief executive Shiela McKechnie.
The Sheila McKechnie Foundation (SMK) and Falkirk Community Trust worked together on the Heritage Lottery Funded project which has created an archive of McKechnie's contribution to feminism, homelessness and consumer affairs issues from the 60s to 2000s.
Sheila, who passed away in 2004 aged just 56, was a passionate trade unionist before joining Shelter. On leaving the homelessness charity she led the Consumer Association, now Which?
The project Sheila McKechnie: The Mark of A Great Campaigner was formally launched on Wednesday at a special reception at Falkirk Town Hall.
The charity, which was set up to promote campaigning following Sheila's death, has worked collaboratively with a range of heritage organisations, including the Bishopsgate Institute and the British Library as well as charitable organisations, such as the Foyer Federation, Shelter and Which? to bring the project to fruition.
The Mark of a Great Campaigner project includes a physical archive of articles, materials and personal reminisces about Sheila, which will be stored in the Falkirk Archives; a touring exhibition, which is currently on display in Falkirk Town Hall until the end of October, and an online archive and resource, which SMK launched at the Falkirk event.
The website looks in detail at Sheila's life and includes an educational resource, which draws on Sheila's legacy to help inspire the campaigners of tomorrow. It also includes a series of oral history interviews, with videos and audio recordings of various people who worked with or knew Sheila and who share their memories of her.
Speaking about the project at the launch event, SMK's chief executive Linda Butcher said: "SMK was created a decade ago in Sheila's name and memory, so it's very appropriate that we are launching The Mark of a Great Campaigner now, during our tenth anniversary, and in Falkirk, Sheila's hometown.
"The archive's two main objectives are to secure Sheila's legacy and to inspire others to seek to emulate what she achieved as an effective campaigner, on behalf of women, homeless individuals, consumers and many others. What Sheila achieved deserves to be more widely known; it's also just as relevant today as when she was alive, which is why the archive is so important in helping to inspire a new generation of campaigners. I hope that as many people as possible view the archive and utilise its resources."
Maureen Campbell, chief executive of the Falkirk Community Trust, which manages the Falkirk Archives, added: "We are delighted to receive the Sheila McKechnie Foundation Archive in Falkirk. It is an inspirational collection that will be highly valued and appreciated by many. We particularly look forward to the learning opportunities developed in tandem with the actual resources and will be pleased to introduce anyone who is interested in learning more to the wide range of materials available. We have been honoured to work with the partners in the project to bring it to fruition."
