THEY are the unheard voices of a generation.

Now thanks to a £136,500 grant they will be recorded and archived for posterity

Voices for Heritage is a Lottery-funded project giving young LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) people from across Hampshire the chance to research the county’s hidden LGBT history.

With training and expert help from youth support centre Y Services the youngsters will delve into the county’s history books, documents and archives to find people who witnessed first-hand the fight for LGBT rights.

The two-year project will train young people in oral history research and documentary film making, enabling them to record the memories of older people in the community who grew up in a society where being gay was illegal, and being transgender was socially unacceptable.

These oral histories, exploring topics like coming out, will then be made available to the public as part of the Hampshire archives.

The young people will also develop a range of educational materials, including posters, lesson plans and short films, to raise the profile of LGBT history and to ensure

the community’s voice is preserved.

Participant Eleanor Leinster said: “Voices for Heritage is all about a sense of belonging and community, and knowing where you come from, and those like you that came before you.

“Sharing experiences can also make people feel less alone and that the problems or situations we as young people face today maybe similar to people before us, and obviously they got through it somehow to get to this point, so by hearing their stories it can help us get through our hard times too.”

Voices for Heritage’s £49,000 share of the cash will go towards buying equipment and paying for training. Having bought their kit they are now on the lookout for people to interview.

If you would like to get involved contact Dawn Tracy at Y Services for Young People on dawn@yservices.co.uk

Two other organisations from the south have also been granted cash.

Support U Ltd has been awarded £77,200 for a project researching and sharing the history of the 1957 Wolfenden Report on the 60th anniversary of its publication.

Chaired by Lord John Wolfenden, then vice-Chancellor of the University of Reading, ‘The Report of the Committee on Homosexual Offences and Prostitution’ led to the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 1967.

The project will explore the events and effects of this significant moment.

Working in partnership with the University of Reading and Reading Museum, Support U’s youth group will create a documentary about the report, examining local archives and interviewing figures relating to the report.

Their research will form the basis of an exhibition and events programme with the University of Reading, as well as lesson plans, educational materials and teachers training sessions for schools in the Thames Valley.

This year marks both the 60th anniversary of the publication of the Wolfenden Report and 120 years since Oscar Wilde was released from Reading Gaol.

Stuart McLeod, Head of HLF South East England, said: “It’s fantastic that we can support these three great projects to shine a light on parts of history that have traditionally been overlooked. Thanks to National Lottery players, these fascinating stories will be rightfully brought to the fore and preserved for future generations – an important record of the challenges and achievements of the LGBT community.”

Worthing World of Words festival has been awarded £9,700 for ‘Wilde: Worthing Rediscovers its Lost Connection’, a project researching and celebrating the town’s connection to writer Oscar Wilde.

This year marks 120 years since Wilde was released from Reading Gaol, following his imprison-

ment on charges of gross indecency.

Three years earlier, he had holidayed in Worthing with his wife and two sons. During this time, he wrote The Importance of Being Earnest, in which one of his characters adopts the sirname ‘Worthing’.