CIfA 2021 A Guide for Clients

34 contact with surfaces and having ‘dwell time’ at potential pinch points like break spaces and picnic tables was not a possibility. Instead, evaluation was informal with conversations between CPAT staff and volunteers, as well as follow-on surveys sent by email. With numbers limited further by Welsh government restrictions to movement only within counties, a close group of volunteers formed who acted as peer support for each other throughout the two weeks on site. Shared experiences of getting used to the new one way systems, face shields during finds processing, and finding ways to chat and socialise at lunch break in a safely distanced fashion brought the group closer together. Above all, the nature of working on site – going through the careful process of excavation and recording in a methodical fashion, finding a comfortable and effective pace of trowelling or clearing spoil, and sorting finds in a meticulous fashion – is a way of finding a rhythm that some volunteers describe as almost meditative. CPAT has only begun to explore the impacts of archaeological fieldwork on wellbeing, both short and long term. While staff can see the immediate impact and gather observation- based evidence, the next step is to gather larger, quantifiable datasets on the impact it can have on a diverse range of people, and how archaeological projects can include this important outcome in their planning and delivery across developer-led, research, and project-based excavations. This evidence will help CIfA and other organisations to deliver important messages to policy makers, project partners and other key stakeholders that the value of archaeology and archaeological outreach is more than the impact on knowledge and understanding of the past; it is also deeply embedded in social and economic impacts on local and wider communities. Penelope Foreman P CIfA , Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust Working in a bubble or in their own, socially distanced spot – volunteers found plenty of space in the trench. ©CPAT