Trustees from Kennet Valley at War Trust visited Newbury College on Friday 27 February to present Media Students with a remote-control helicopter camera which will be used to help the students complete the new website they are working on as part of a lottery funded project.
Students at the College have been working with the Trust to preserve West Berkshire's wartime history and promote its heritage to future generations after it received grant money to conserve its collection of Second World War artefacts. Students have been photographing items from the museum to include in a database driven website that they have designed as part of their College course.
Newbury College's Interactive Media Course Leader Julian Bellmont said, "The project is of enormous educational benefit to the students, enabling them to get actively involved in the local community. The UAV Drone will allow students to take aerial photographs that will be included on the website".
Trustee Roger Day said, "This is a very exciting development. The innovative use of a remote-controlled helicopter camera to photograph Littlecote House, home to the 506th (US) Parachute Infantry Regiment from late 1943 until June 1944, and other areas of the Kennet Valley's Second World War heritage will add considerable value to the new website."
Media student at Newbury College Matt Steele said, "I've really enjoyed working on this project and have learnt a great deal."
The Kennet Valley at War Trust received £30,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund for this exciting project to conserve and enhance the charity's collection of Second World War artefacts and to increase the number of ways in which the local community can access the collection and celebrate their local heritage.
The project also enables the creation of a new education pack (to be available online, and to be printed and distributed to 250 schools in North Wiltshire, West Berkshire and Swindon), the development of three walks exploring the Kennet Valley's war time archaeology, and the delivery of a series of 10 workshops to broaden access and enable great community involvement.