| Administrative History | The 'Cathedrals Through Touch and Hearing' project was developed by the Department of Education at the University of Birmingham between 1988 and 1993. John Hull was appointed Director, his main role being fundraising, reporting to the Board of Trustees and attending dedication services. Juliet Reeve was Associate Director and managed day to day work, communicating and visiting cathedrals, organising braille books, tapes, commentaries, touch and hearing centres, models, installations, blind awareness for volunteer staff, publicity and media, and attendance at dedication services. John Hull largely withdrew from the project in 1990 and it was then continued by Juliet Reeve.
The project was acknowledged to be over-ambitious from the start and ended abruptly in February 1993. The project's end achievements included installations of some or all of the components at 16 cathedrals: Birmingham, Canterbury, Chichester, Coventry, Durham, Exeter, Gloucester, Hereford, Lichfield, Lincoln, Norwich, Peterborough, St Albans, Salisbury, Worcester and York. Truro and Wells were left unfinished and Glastonbury Abbey was undertaken in 1999 by Juliet Reeve in her personal capacity in conjunction with the University of Bristol.
Other individuals involved in the project included John Best who created wooden cathedral models; Eric Sayce who helped with publicity and media; and Liz Matthews who provided feedback on models, braille and commentaries.
Further information about the project and a biography of Juliet Reeve (1938-2015) can be found in the deposit file.
Sources: records relating to 'Cathedrals Through Touch and Hearing'; information supplied by the donor |
| Custodial History | Material was retained by Juliet Reeve following the end of the project. Following her death on 29 August 2015 the material came into the custody of her niece, Rosemary Holley. |