Wings to the Past, using the past to inspire and empower the armed forces family.
Wings to the Past offers the armed forces family a chance to engage with collaborative archaeological projects, creating time, memories and supporting personal resilience.
Wings to the Past are delighted to announce that our projects are now open to Royal Navy and Army personnel and their dependants as well as the Royal Air Force. In addition, to support personnel and families to connect after exit, Service leavers and their dependents, up to 1 year after exit, can also apply! See our current opportunities on our projects page, application deadlines are extended.
HAVE A LOOK!
2 new projects have been announced, 1 in Aug 24 and another in Oct both in Lincolnshire, both during weekends and open to families.
Places available in August digging at the Roman site of Caistor St Edmund and with Norton Disney & Time Team in October, apply now. Head over to our projects page for more information. Open to over 13s!
Wings to the Past are pleased to announce that we have won the Flora Murray Award, presented by the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology.
Archaeology has been found to promote personal resilience, and Wings to the Past aims to use this to support RAF families and personnel by providing them with the chance to collaborate on engaging archaeological and heritage ventures.
Wings to the Past seeks to cultivate personal and family resilience among RAF personnel and their wider family by involving them in archaeology, heritage, and other related events. Additionally, through these initiatives, Wings to the Past intends to establish connections with the broader community via community engagement.
Make a donation.
Please help support us and keep Wings to the Past going.
Wings to the Past - the Start.
Wings to the Past was conceived in 2019 when three of our Steering Group members saw the benefit that archaeology had on the son of one of them. A Serving Officer, who had worked away from home during the week for several years and for extended periods, she brought her son onto a veterans dig with her so they could spend time together as he had recently been struggling with not being able to spend time with his mum. During the week both grew together and it was clear to everyone that the focused nature of the archeological work offered them a unique opportunity to be together with few distractions. From this experience Wings to the Past was born.
Interested in knowing more or getting involved with Wings to the Past?
If you are a Serving member of the RAF click below to see how you can get involved.
For all others - click the link to understand more about how we seek to engage with the wider community.
“Having involved thousands of people in archeological excavations, and broadcast to millions more,I know that everyone gains so much [from archaeology]. I am pleased to be able to give people in Lincolnshire the chance to have a great time making important new discoveries about the past. The University of Lincoln’s Riseholme site is a remarkable place.”
— Professor Carenza Lewis 2019