Heritage Project – Mary Seacole Housing Association

Heritage Project

With the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Mary Seacole Housing Association launched their two-year ‘Heritage Project’ in January 2022, naming it ‘Let’s Not Forget’. Our focus has been to explore and celebrate the unique synergy between Mary Seacole (November 1805 – 14 May 1881) and the founder, and life president of Mary Seacole Housing Association, Desline Stewart MBE. Mary Seacole and Desline came from Jamaica but left their homeland to live in the UK. Desline and Mary Seacole had a shared ethos, so they significantly contributed to enriching their communities through philanthropy and charitable work.

The first year involved research and gathering information about Desline’s journey to the UK during the Windrush, and the founding of the Mary Seacole Housing Association. Through memoirs and interviews, we have traced her footsteps and highlighted the similarities between Desline and Mary Seacole to put into our documentary.

The second year will focus on documentary and exhibition production. We will share individuals’ stories to create a timeline that represents the growth of the Mary Seacole Housing Association. This timeline explores Desline’s shared ethos with Mary Seacole. In addition, we will analyse literature reviews and peer interviews with other Windrush generation members. All information gathered will be accumulated in various formats, such as oral, written, photographic, and footage to be inserted into the documentary, exhibition, and online gallery.