I’m looking to reduce my commitments by handing over the role of CLASP Webmaster to a willing and able volunteer.

The role involves managing CLASP’s online assets which are:

– the claspweb.org.uk website, domain names and hosting (all in one account);
– the claspweb Yahoo mailing groups;
– the CLASP Google Drive account;
– the CLASP Vimeo account.

I also keep an eye on the CLASP Facebook page: Gina Brown runs that, but occasionally she welcomes support.

The claspweb.org.uk website is a WordPress site: it’s a relatively straightforward one, but a reasonable knowledge and experience of WordPress is needed to edit it. The Whitehall and Local People websites are native html sites (produced in Dreamweaver) stored on the same server as the main website: they are essentially archives, and should not need editing.

All the accounts are owned by CLASP – at the moment Dave Hayward (as Chair) is the named owner, and he takes care of all payments, so that is not required of the webmaster.

I will be happy to be an advisory backstop for as long as necessary for the new webmaster to feel confident to carry on alone – but I am not willing to give training in any aspect of the technical management, for example, WordPress.

Interested? Please email me at webmaster@claspweb.org.uk if you’d like to explore this.

Jeremy Cooper

Comments from the CLASP Facebook group:

• Great afternoon on Borough Hill. 50+ people braved the weather to learn about local history. Fun, informative, spreading the message.
• Thank you so much for the opportunity to see the work that has been done on Borough Hill. My children and I were fascinated, a really lovely opportunity to see the past alive on our doorstep.

Waitrose have agreed to have a community collection for CLASP at their Daventry store during September – please put the green tokens in!

Thanks to Chris Mawby for this initiative.

A message from Dave Hayward, Chair of CLASP Trustees:

“As many of you are already aware CLASP has been participating with MOLA in a joint project researching the archaeological history of the enigmatic Borough Hill, Daventry. The first phase of this work, documentary research, geophysical survey and drone flyovers is now complete with interpretation being finalised. To ensure that these results are put into the wider public domain MOLA has prepared a superb interactive website that has been launched this week.

The website address is:- https://arcg.is/0uuHrO

For the future this work will continue, hopefully moving into excavations during the next couple of years. CLASP members will of course be able to participate in the future phases of this joint project.

Joint Press Release (please note amended timings)

Click here for the gallery of the 74 mosaics made by visitors to the CLASP stand at the Milton Keynes Festival of History in June 2019.

CLASP has been involved in a joint project with MOLA researching the hill-fort on Borough Hill, Daventry, which is assessed as being the second largest hill-fort in the country.

CLASP has now agreed with MOLA that for the Council of British Archaeology (CBA) National Archaeology Week 2019, we will jointly provide a series of guided walks over at least part of the site, starting at the Daventry Golf Club at the northern end.

These  walks will take place on the afternoons of Thursday 25th and Sunday 28th July. We now need volunteers from the CLASP membership to assist with the events to act as both guides and generally assisting on the day. You will be fully briefed as to latest details about the hill-fort etc., hopefully with a walk round to brief volunteers before the event begins.

If you can volunteer to assist please email me on:-

chair_trustees@claspweb.org.uk

Thanks in advance!

Dave Hayward

CLASP ran its two 2-day Archaeology Taster courses on 4th to 7th July 2019. Twenty-three attended plus five CLASP presenters supported by five other Members.

The first day of each course was mainly in the CLASP Field Centre covering Best Practices , Field-walking, Planning, Context, Geophysics and Surveying. On the second day participants chose between practical training on Geophysics or Surveying.

Feedback on the days was very positive. CLASP gained many new Members. Participants had very diverse skills and can utilise these to be active in CLASP in many diverse ways.

See the CLASPWEB Facebook group for some photos and feedback.

The latest newsletter from the Northampton Archaeological Society Newsletter:

NAS NEWS May 2019

Subject to sufficient interest, CLASP will run a two-day Archaeology Taster/Refresher Session on Thursday 4th and Friday 5th July
to be repeated on
Saturday 6th July and Saturday 7th July.

CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS & enrolment form