Seedcorn 2023/2024

Neurodivergent is a term coined by Kassiane Asasumasu, to describe people who are “neurologically divergent from typical”. Neurodivergence is a broad umbrella and might include familiar diagnoses such as autistic spectrum conditions, ADHD, dyslexia alongside any atypical neurological experience that may or not necessitate formal diagnosis, including synaesthesia or age-related memory loss. There is a growing movement to raise awareness and understanding of neurodivergence, particularly sensory needs in relation to the physical environment.

What will the project involve? 

The project brings together a new multi-disciplinary/sector team of archivists, a historian, and a creative practitioner all with different lived experience of neurodivergence. Together they will investigate how archives can better serve the needs of their neurodivergent users.

This project will focus on the currently neglected area of neurodivergent access to and use of archives. This is important because researchers from many academic disciplines and non-academic backgrounds undertake archival research, and a proportion of these users will be neurodivergent. The processes and the physical environment of an archive can be tricky to navigate for all users, but it can be prohibitively problematic for neurodivergent people. Visiting an archive to conduct research could trigger sensory processing issues resulting in overwhelm, leaving a neurodivergent user unable to engage with archive materials. The researchers want to work toward developing archival spaces that celebrate neurodiversity, facilitating access to collections and fostering comfortable working environments that can be tailored to the needs of all users. This is important because everybody should be able to access cultural collections.

This project will work with University of Bristol Cultural Collections archivists and use the Theatre Collection and the Special Collections archive spaces as case study sites. Both locations are typical of archives within the UK and are directed by archivists with extensive experience of working in the sector, who are members of the project team. This means that the findings will be scalable and transferable to other archives throughout the country.

The sensory experience of archival research operates in two forms – through interaction with the archive building and through interaction with collection materials. In reading rooms documents are handled, books and pamphlets are opened, and pages are turned over, maps unfolded, inventories unrolled. During these physical interactions items are investigated in different ways; hidden or obscured details can be gleaned from viewing things in different lights and from different angles, smells, sounds, and textures are all part of this rich sensory experience. These aspects of archival research are often overlooked. This project will explore sensory barriers but also opportunities for different sensory encounters and the potential for developing new methodologies for archival research in co-production with neurodivergent researchers.

The research questions of this project shall be explored through two primary phases which will inform the later stages of output production:

1. Scoping work - to learn more about current practice and access policies in relation to the built environment and neurodiversity. The team will look at work across sectors to identify examples of good practice that could be applied to the archive environment. They will make links with ‘The Neurodiverse Museum’ who are undertaking similar work in the museum sector. They will identify academic publications in the emergent field of neurodiversity studies to gain understanding of how their work will contribute to this new (and developing) research space.
2. They will establish a panel of neurodivergent archive users from their existing links with the Neurodiversity Staff Network (NSN) and Neurodivergent Humanities Research Network (NHRN). Together they will co-produce the case study work; explore experiences of using archives; investigate different ways of using these spaces; discuss how collections materials are interacted with and begin to identify problematic areas (in physical spaces and in the process) and new neurodivergent methods for engaging with archive materials from a sensory perspective (they will also engage with colleagues in the UoB senses and sensations group in this element of the work). They will do this through testing out several approaches:
   
   - Walking interviews which will be undertaken by accompanying participants as they conduct their archival research.
   
   - Employing an adapted version of the co-produced survey that has been developed by Professor Ute Leonards, Dr Joel Ross and Asha Sahni. Participants take pictures of spaces in archive buildings that they seek out or that they try to avoid due to environmental elements. These are accompanied by comfort ratings and written/spoken explanations.
   
   -Through group discussions where visual minutes will be taken, to be shared with participants and stakeholders

Who are the team and what do they bring?

• Angharad Davies (Joey Pods) is an artist, computational designer, and consultant specialising in sensory processing. As a single mother raising an autistic child, and with a personal diagnosis of ADHD received during her BSc Architecture studies in 2019, Annie's journey has been deeply informed by her experiences. Since completing her studies and receiving her diagnoses, Annie has dedicated herself to crafting experiences and environments tailored to individuals with sensory processing disorders, including designing ‘Joey pods’. Her expertise has been instrumental in providing accessibility solutions for various events, including festivals, theatrical productions, and immersive art installations, ensuring inclusivity from online booking to the on-site experience.
• Barbara Caddick (Primary Care, Bristol Medical School) is a researcher in primary care and a social and cultural historian. She is interested in research methods that engage with the senses and is a member of the UoB Senses and Sensations research group. Recently she has been undertaking work to capture memories of healthcare c.1940-1970 and is interested in both the role of the senses in triggering memory and sensory memories (of medicines and spaces of healthcare). This has led to her involvement in the UCL architecture of pharmacies project
• Nicky Sugar (Special Collections) is Head of Special Collections at the University of Bristol, and has over 20 years experience in Local Authority and Higher Education archives services. She has always had a keen access in increasing access, and as Senior Archivist for the British Empire & Commonwealth Collection at Bristol Archives led on various projects to engage with postcolonial and diaspora communities.

What is to come?

The project is building towards three core outcome goals:

1. Prototype resources – From the findings the team will work together with their panel to develop a range of resources to facilitate better interactions and experiences within archives. These will include; sensory/tactile maps (that can be displayed in entrances to both buildings); recommendations/guidance for archive staff; suggestions of how the environment can be changed/improved; resources that can be developed to help facilitate positive user experiences; new interdisciplinary methods for engaging with collection materials and informing new ways to conduct archival research; recommendations that can be incorporated into the design of the new purpose built archive facilities.
2. Dissemination – a workshop event where archivists and academics working in the neurodiversity field will be invited to hear about the project findings and transferable suggestions for change. A co-produced academic article in a suitable journal for neurodiversity studies. The team have been invited to present findings to the NHRN by PI Louise Creechan. They will present findings to UoB Senses and Sensations network.
3. Next steps – Future funding proposals to; pilot and evaluate resources and changes made to archive space; Widen the research population to capture the perceptions of a sample of users (not just neurodivergent users); Scale up the work for roll out across other archives; Stakeholder work with archivists; Sharing of findings with similar cultural organisations (such as libraries and museums); Working with colleagues in the NHRN to develop new archival research methods; Developing policy briefing materials to initiate change at a strategic level.