Events

Storytelling enables nuclear, transport and other large infrastructure projects to communicate their challenges, progress, and experience. What does this look like in practice?

Everyone loves a great story and in our profession, we are fortunate to have so many to tell. The challenge is often pitching that story to the audience. It’s not always a keen local society or a group of school students; sometimes it’s a hard-pressed developer or a client with competing demands.

Helen Wass will share some of the ways that HS2 and its amazing supply chain has sought to communicate the nature, excitement, and challenges of our works. Helen will highlight examples of current best practice, ways to reach a wide audience and how to help celebrate the benefit that archaeological practice brings in so many ways.

Speaker: Helen Wass 

Helen's interest in the past started early - growing up in Northumberland so many trips were to Hadrian’s Wall where as a curious child she wondered what Romans were doing there. Fast forward through volunteering on archaeological excavations, university and a post grad, Helen worked as a field archaeologist and researcher before joining the world of consultancy. Through various roles she ended up working on High Speed One; it was a career-defining role working for Rail Link Engineering, the consortium that project-managed and oversaw delivery of the archaeology programme.

Helen is now ten years in on High Speed 2 as Head of Heritage. She and the discipline lead have a strategic remit setting project’s strategy and technical standards for the historic environment. With her team she monitors the supply chain delivering the work on the ground, engage and consult with a myriad of stakeholders from the local community to Historic England and their engineering colleagues.Helen is excited to be able to share our amazing discoveries and lessons learnt in delivering the largest ever programme of archaeology in the UK.