Aya Van Renterghem - Archive Project Officer

At the end of April 2025, I joined the Co-operative College as Project Archivist for Seeds of Change, a two-year initiative funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This first blog post offers an introduction to the project and reflects on the first four months of work.

The focus of Seeds of Change is the rich and varied archive of the Co-operative College, encompassing both historical and contemporary records. The funding supports a collaborative effort between the Project Archivist and community volunteers to unlock, conserve, and catalogue the College’s collection, with the aim of making it accessible to all. Key objectives include identifying materials for digitisation and conservation, developing outreach events and volunteer-led projects, and curating an exhibition to mark the end of the project.

The Co-operative College Collection

Founded in 1919 by the co-operative movement, the Co-operative College was established to extend educational opportunities to co-operators. Although the idea of a co-operative college dates back to the 1830s, it was only realized in the early 20th century. Its early curriculum focused on running successful co-operative enterprises and fostering ethical behaviour within the movement. The College began with residential courses, welcoming students from across the UK, Iceland, and Australia.

The College’s first home was Holyoake House in Manchester, where students were accommodated in nearby hostels. Holyoake House remains the base of the National Co-operative Archive and is where the Seeds of Change project is currently based. In 1945, the College relocated to Stanford Hall near Loughborough to expand its residential facilities. Following the sale of the hall in 2001, the College returned to Holyoake House, where it continues its mission, embracing modern technologies and innovative approaches to learning.

One of the many fun finds in the Collection! Co-operative College Collection, CWS Pelaw designs for College furniture (1967)

Historically, the College provided specialist education to members and employees of co-operative societies, many of whom came from working-class backgrounds. It pioneered new forms of learning, including correspondence courses and study visits to co-operatives, and built a reputation as a centre of excellence for training, consultancy, and research. From 1946, a partnership with the Colonial Office brought students from Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, further broadening its international reach.

The archives document the College’s history from 1919 to the present day and include its current records, all of which are of importance to the development of co-operative education. The collection includes photographs, books, exam results, estate records from Stanford Hall, and much more. It also reflects the breadth of the College’s educational provision: from courses for co-operative societies and individual members to auxiliary groups such as the Co-operative Women’s Guild. The archives offer a valuable lens through which to explore the history of the movement, the teaching of co-operative principles, and the College’s wider role in social and international development throughout the 20th century.

While preservation remains the project’s central aim, Seeds of Change also seeks to enrich the archive through oral history interviews with past and present staff and students, and to raise awareness of its significance through outreach and volunteering activities.

The start of the project

None of this, however, is able to happen in the first stage of a project. The most important thing and the key task for an archivist in order to make the archive usable for other purposes like outreach and engagement, is to figure out what is in the archive and create a list of its contents. In the case of the College collection, because the archive is spread across three rooms, most of the first four months of the project have been spent identifying which boxes belong to the College collection, what is in them, and how the different parts relate to the whole.

A baseline survey of the collection revealed 166 boxes, alongside magazine holders, shelves of exam materials, and miscellaneous items — a diverse mix of paperwork, books, pamphlets, scrapbooks, journals, architectural drawings, photographs, negatives, and audiovisual materials. Much of this material was housed in unsuitable packaging, so as part of the listing process, this packaging has been removed and replaced with acid-free archival storage materials. A structure has also been established to ingest the College’s born-digital records, with the first intake already underway. These foundational tasks are essential to ensure the archive’s long-term preservation and usability, and they pave the way for future outreach and digitisation efforts.

A box of unsorted archive materials

Volunteer support has been instrumental in accelerating progress. Three volunteers have joined the project so far, contributing over 70 hours in July alone. Their work spans the College’s printed books, photography collections, dissertations, manuals, and handbooks – each area requiring careful cleaning, repackaging, and listing. One volunteer is also developing accessible workflows to support future contributors. This collaborative spirit not only enhances the archive’s accessibility but also fosters a sense of shared ownership and engagement with the College’s heritage. The team’s enthusiasm and dedication have already made a tangible impact, and their involvement will continue to shape the project’s trajectory in the months ahead.

Part of preserving the archive is removing harmful materials, which results in large piles of paperclips and rubber bands

Alongside the core archival work, the project has begun to establish its public-facing elements. A space has already been secured at Manchester Central Library for the final Seeds of Change exhibition, scheduled to run from January to May 2027. This early booking ensures the project will culminate in a prominent and accessible venue, allowing the wider public to engage with the College’s history and the work of its volunteers. Planning for the exhibition is still in its infancy, but the commitment to showcasing the archive’s richness is already shaping how materials are selected and interpreted.

Public engagement has also begun in earnest. March saw the launch of a newly published book on the history of the Co-operative College, which was celebrated with a well-attended event at the Working Class Movement Library in Salford. We are now preparing for a second public talk in November in Huddersfield. These events not only raise awareness of the archive but also foster dialogue around co-operative education and its contemporary relevance – themes that will continue to inform the project’s outreach and programming.

As the project moves into its next phase, the momentum built over these first few months offers a strong foundation for what’s to come. With listing and cataloguing underway, volunteers actively shaping the collection, and public events already sparking interest, Seeds of Change is beginning to connect the Co-operative College’s past with its present and future. The coming months will bring new opportunities to deepen these connections, through oral histories, outreach activities, and preparations for the final exhibition. 

Our thanks go to our funders - and National Lottery Players