12th January 2006, 01:57 PM
Quote:quote:Originally posted by PetethedigLook on the good side of this, it could be the spark that ignites the comeback of amateur archaeology! Lets face it the way that local councils are going this will become a more viable option for many in the years ahead.
Unfortunately the absolute reverse is likely to be the case. The staff of many local authority based units are often the mainstays of the non-professional archaeological scene in towns, cities and counties. When the local unit goes, it is often very difficult for local non-pros to maintain the profile of local based archaeology. Not helped of course by the fact that many local authority elected members seem of the opinion that by 'closing archaeology' down, it somehow dissapears from the agenda.
I have no close ties with the Northants Unit, but do feel that if they go (and maybe, as is rumoured, other local authority units based not a million miles away) it will be a sad day for all UK archaeologists, both professional and non-professional.