Rachel Thorpe

Thesis title:

Me Grandad worra pit mon': The changing face of the South Derbyshire Mining Community, 1947-2022

My PhD explores individual and societal changes in the former coalmining area of South Derbyshire, capturing the heritage of the region and creating new interdisciplinary models for understanding the nature of community. In particular, I am exploring ideas around emotional and affective communities to ask new questions about the role of women in community building and the intergenerational transference of community beliefs through hierarchies of symbolism that link younger generations to regional pasts.

Research Area

History

Publications

Rachel Thorpe and Natalie Braber, ''When you're in the pit or the pub, they're all mates': Coal mining communities in the East Midlands,' Family and Community History (2025)

Conferences

NTU History Postgraduate Conference 2022

East Midlands Doctoral Conference 2024

M4C Research Festival 2024

Public Engagement & Impact

Presentation of Research at Heritage Open Days, Sharpes Pottery Museum, Swadlincote (2025)
Unmanned research exhibition, Swadlincote Visitor Information Centre (2025)

Volunteer Experience

South Derbyshire Mining Preservation Group - Education and Communications Officer

- Led various project on behalf of the group, including working with Historic England to provide a box of artefacts for local schools to borrow; a 5 lesson scheme of learning; a training day for local teachers providing instruction and inspiration for local history teaching in primary schools.

- Won small grants to allow the group to: implement a more comprehensive cataloguing and storage system for the group's collection; improve and enhance display materials for public engagement events; create an oral history archive; create a digital trail and virtual miner display.

- Created collection interpretations in a museum space.

- Participated in and led public engagement events including displays at local events and research presentations.