Who are the Friends of Canterbury Archaeological Trust?

The principal aim of the Friends is to support the work of Canterbury Archaeological Trust (CAT) with their outreach and engagement work within the communities where CAT operates. As a registered charity, CAT works closely with schools, universities, care homes, hospices, dementia cafes, colleges, home educated children, museums, volunteers and community groups to deliver a wide range of outreach activities.

The aim of the community engagement is to educate, inform and inspire the public to appreciate their local and national heritage, to feel pride of place and a desire to conserve our past for future enjoyment. The Friends help us to achieve these goals through financial contributions and by volunteering their time and expertise to our cause.

Each year the Friends make grants totalling thousands of pounds to the Trust to support its projects and provides bursaries to staff to assist with professional development. The Friends gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the Donald Baron Fund in contributing to these bursaries.

What does membership involve?

To become a member of the Friends, we ask for an annual donation of £20 per year, which is used to fund our outreach, education and engagement activities. We offer concessionary rates to students, young members, and those on a low income. We keep you updated on how we spend your membership funds via the Friends Newsletter, which you will receive three times each year. We will also post updates here on the Friends webpage.

The Friends organisation is a community of like-minded people who have a passion for heritage and archaeology. For this reason, we organise speakers to come and share their research and expertise with us part of a regular lecture series. Some of these lectures take place online via Zoom, while others offer an opportunity for the Friends to get together to hear from a speaker and to socialise. If you would like to attend one of our lectures as a non-member, we ask for a suggested donation of £2 per person and ask that you book using the RSVP button for the relevant lecture you would like to join. We always welcome new suggestions for speakers and ideas for lecture topics, so get in touch if you have any ideas.

We often invite the Friends to contribute to the work of the Trust as volunteers or as participants in Trust activities. This can be beneficial for both the Trust and for our volunteer team who get the opportunity to socialise while learning new skills. Volunteering can take the form of excavation work, finds or environmental processing, supporting the delivery of engagement sessions or workshops, or developing resources for schools. Friends receive prior knowledge of volunteering opportunities and other activities before they are made available to the general public, and are given priority when it comes to booking.

Friends are also able to make use of the Trust's library, which hosts a large amount of published and unpublished material. The collection will be of interest to those completing personal research projects. Access is provided by appointment, so get in touch if you would like to complete a research visit.

Upcoming Lectures

Roman Finds from British Rivers: Rubbish or Ritual?
Thu 29 May
Online Event
Professor Hella Eckardt - Senior Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, University of Reading
RSVP
Death is Only the Beginning: Romano-British Ritual Practices in Surrey, England.
Thu 26 Jun
Live event, location to be announced
Dr Ellen Green- AOC Archaeology
RSVP
Outside the Walls: An Update on Canterbury's Late Roman Dead
Thu 24 Jul
Live event, location to be announced
Lisa Duffy – PhD Candidate, Canterbury Christ Church University
RSVP
What have the Romans ever done for us?: Assessing impact of Roman occupation on Britain through mother and infant health
Thu 21 Aug
Live event, location to be announced
Rebecca Pitt, PhD Candidate, University of Reading. Venue TBA
RSVP
From Roman Forts to Viking Mints: Treasures that Changed the Rules
Thu 25 Sept
Live event, location to be announced
Isabelle Diggle, Finds Liaison Officer for Kent, Portable Antiquities Scheme
RSVP

Lectures

Current Newsletter

Newsletter

Previous Newsletters

Previous newsletters are available to Friends using their members password. Please click here to access the members area. Non-members can obtain access on request via get_involved@canterburytrust.ac.uk.

CAT Updates

Updates

Visit us regularly here to find out what we have been working on and how you are contributing to the work of the Trust.