Great day at Stirchley Library and outside the baths today; collecting hands, community support and ideas about how we present ‘the heritage of the baths’ to people. Amazing turnout! We estimate we engaged with over 200 people – and a huge thanks to everyone who came along today – we doubled the amount of hands we have already collected! The official count is 282 hands!

Such evidence that local people want to see the building restored and brought back into use. I especially love the conversation I had with an 8 year old who told me they walked past the building everyday and felt cheated she didn’t know what was inside – hopefully you will soon!

A huge and massive thank you to the volunteers who helped us make this day a very special one, including from Stirchley Baths Community Stakeholders Group: Sue Jackson, Jess Allan and Brenda Thomas; and from Birmingham Conservation Trust: Julian Cleaver, Louise Deakin, Rachel Hoeshan and Jane Baker.  A big thank you also to Mukesh, local Stirchley resident, who was passing by on his way back from The Coop at 9.30 and offered to help us put the washing line up! He stayed and helped out until lunchtime. Talk about community spirit!

After I have typed up all the comments on the hands, we will be putting them into Stirchley Library – so you will get a chance to see what people have said. Matthew, working for Podnosh, has also collected some great interviews for this site, so watch this space!

Final thank you for today is for the wonderful staff at Stirchley Library who were fabulous hosts (and sorry for all the glitter left on the carpet!)

Great day. A strong message for the Heritage Lottery Fund – this is a project worth supporting. The community certainly do!

Such a great afternoon and evening at Stirchley Community Market today – we gathered 75 hands which include ideas about history and heritage-related activity they would like to see at the Baths as part of a Heritage Lottery funded programme, statements of support for the funding application and some lovely memories.

A few local people below who have contributed their hands already!

This means, we now have enough hands to stretch thumb to finger around about a third of the Baths as we begin our community art challenge this Saturday. Phew!

If you are one of the lovely people we spoke to above – then thank you! If you haven’t had the chance to contribute a hand, idea, message of support – please pop along to our event at Stirchley Library on Saturday 10.30am-3pm as we try and create a community SHOW OF HANDS around Stirchley Baths – come and help us get enough hands to fill 60m of washing line!!

(I’m sure Stirchley Library staff won’t mind if you drop a hand off before the event if you can’t make it on Saturday!)

Right, best get on with some more laminating!!