25th April 2010, 12:07 PM
Hi Arthus. These are very laudable aims and I can see where you're coming from.
However, I wonder if you've read other recent threads on this board? Archaeology in the UK is going through a period of crisis. Many people find it a stressful occupation and a fair number seem to leave. Working conditions are not ideal for a lot of people; this seems mainly due to financial constraints, but a further trawl of this board will reveal a range of concerns in commercial, academic and voluntary/community fields.
I can imagine that properly mentored and managed, limited exposure to a "not-real-world" version of UK archaeology could be very useful as a form of therapy in the ways that you describe. However, that would require a radical sea-change in an environment where decent archaeological practice sometimes appears to be fighting for survival and competition for any kind of work (paid or unpaid) is very fierce amongst a large pool of experienced and qualified people. Your idea would need some sort of funding - I'm pretty sure this wouldn't be available from the archaeology side and the British health system is already cracking financially.
In short, as a bit of an outsider (I'm just a student at present) archaeology in the UK feels more like it's going to cause mental health problems, rather than relieve them. It certainly isn't an environment where a complete beginner can expect to get paid.
Sorry that all sounds so negative - I obviously need a breakfast cereal with a higher sugar content! Your aims are fantastic and I wish you well, but you may have picked quite a bad moment economically to take this forward. If you can come up with a business plan with ideas of funding sources, you might well be onto something.
However, I wonder if you've read other recent threads on this board? Archaeology in the UK is going through a period of crisis. Many people find it a stressful occupation and a fair number seem to leave. Working conditions are not ideal for a lot of people; this seems mainly due to financial constraints, but a further trawl of this board will reveal a range of concerns in commercial, academic and voluntary/community fields.
I can imagine that properly mentored and managed, limited exposure to a "not-real-world" version of UK archaeology could be very useful as a form of therapy in the ways that you describe. However, that would require a radical sea-change in an environment where decent archaeological practice sometimes appears to be fighting for survival and competition for any kind of work (paid or unpaid) is very fierce amongst a large pool of experienced and qualified people. Your idea would need some sort of funding - I'm pretty sure this wouldn't be available from the archaeology side and the British health system is already cracking financially.
In short, as a bit of an outsider (I'm just a student at present) archaeology in the UK feels more like it's going to cause mental health problems, rather than relieve them. It certainly isn't an environment where a complete beginner can expect to get paid.
Sorry that all sounds so negative - I obviously need a breakfast cereal with a higher sugar content! Your aims are fantastic and I wish you well, but you may have picked quite a bad moment economically to take this forward. If you can come up with a business plan with ideas of funding sources, you might well be onto something.