Midlothian Young Archaeologists Club

AOC Archaeology Group’s community outreach work isn’t limited to one-off open days and specific projects requiring public participation. Since 2004, staff from AOC Archaeology Group's Edinburgh office have run the Midlothian Young Archaeologists Club. Because of the commitment of a large number of staff, who are prepared to volunteer their attendance on a rota basis, the burden of taking on this new responsibility has diminished from what it might have been if it relied solely on the enthusiasm of one individual.

The Midlothian Young Archaeologists Club meets once a month with members of the group participating in a wide variety of activities. The Young Archaeologists not only visit historical sites around Midlothian, such as Cousland Smiddy and Crichton Castle, but also have the opportunity to visit AOC excavations. Group members get the chance to see how archaeological discoveries are made and learn archaeological skills, such as plan and section drawing, map reading and artefact identification.

When there is so much interest in archaeology amongst the public it is important that a commercial archaeology unit takes the time to engage with them in order to make the archaeology it practices more relevant to local communities. This process can be as rewarding to the archaeologists as it is to the community.

Midlothian Young Archaeologist Club President: Victoria Oleksy
Midlothian Young Archaeologist Club Secretary: Martin Cook