The award-winning People’s Mobile Archive (PMA) programme returns to tackle rural isolation, health inequalities, and cultural exclusion through a rich heritage programme. The PMA builds on the recognition it received in 2025, awarded Best Small Museum project from the Museums Association. It was commended for promoting community wellbeing and connectivity through its innovative use of museum collections and intangible heritage to address contemporary environmental issues and decolonisation practices in museums.
The PMA shows how small museums can meet pressing social and environmental needs through collaboration, care, and collections. It transforms heritage into a tool for justice and recovery, changing lives in remote Highland communities.

2026 Programme

Collection Conversations

An accessible group where conversation is inspired by objects and archives in the collection and their climate and colonial connections. Fortnightly Thursdays 2-3pm in the Library Lounge

9th April Twist and Twirl Waltz and Birl: The importance of Village Halls and Venue Spaces for rural Highland communities.

23rd April Electrifying the Highlands: The history of electricity provision in Sutherland and a discussion on renewable energy and net-zero goals.

7th May Stories from the Linen Cupboard: Stories and memories inspired by household linens and Scotland’s colonial textile trade.

21st May Digitising Objects and Memory Twins: The creation of digital replicas and interpretive narratives to ensure long-term preservation and meaningful reuse of cultural heritage collections. In collaboration with St Andrews University

4th June Mariners’ Help: The Story of the Helmsdale Lifeboat:
The story of the Helmsdale Lifeboat and saving lives at sea.

18th June National Inventory of Living Heritage: Safeguarding Intangible Heritage: A National Inventory for Living Heritage in the UK has been established, supported by UNESCO, to list and safeguard Intangible Cultural Heritage practices. In collaboration with Museums Galleries Scotland

2nd July Fire Raising during the Highland Clearances: This session examines the brutal tactic of fire raising employed during the Sutherland Estate Clearances from 1809-1821.

16th July William Macleod Collection (Photographer, Helmsdale): William Macleod was a photographer who lived in Helmsdale during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His photography captured the people and places in Helmsdale and District.

30th July Every House has a Story: How to Research Your House : We are delighted to be joined by Carol Aldred, who will share fascinating insights into the history of her home ‘Toshlair’ in Helmsdale.

Climate Justice Reading Club

Selections of readings from the past and present documenting environmental and social change in Sutherland through a global lens. Fortnightly Thursdays, 2-3pm in the Library Lounge

2nd April Lie of the Land: Scotland’s Eviction Laws 1813-2025: This session will explore the intersection of eviction, climate change, and colonialism. We will be reviewing Scotland’s eviction laws from 1813 until present days.

16th April Highland Estates and Public Interest: Does the scale of large estates in the northern highlands of Scotland matter if the landowner and public interest outcomes are aligned?

30th April Listed Buildings: architecture and historic interest: Protecting the area’s built cultural heritage through legislation and community power.

14th May Women Who Revolt: The Poetry of Mary MacPherson: Inspiring stories about women and the activism movement in 19th-century Scotland, including Skye poet and land reformist, Mary MacPherson.

28th May Lie and Land: Napier Commission (1883): The Crofters’ War and the Napier Commission. Transcript from the meeting in the Free Church, Helmsdale, October 1883.

11th June Statistical Accounts of Kildonan and Loth (1791-1845): The ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Statistical Accounts of Scotland offer snapshots of life and change in the Sutherland parishes of Kildonan and Loth, before and after the Highland Clearances.

25th June The Last Witch: Who was Janet Horne?: The 16th-century Scottish Witch Act discriminated against women, leading to witch hunts and persecution. This session will feature accounts of Sutherland and Caithness.

9th July Resiliant Peatlands: Talk about the science of peatlands and their natural capability to recover from extremes of drought, fire, and rainfall.

23rd July Mary Brooksbank and the Working Women’s Guild: Mary Brooksbank was a mill worker in Dundee, a socialist, poet, and activist, who founded the Working Women’s Guild in 1930.

6th August Natural History of Sutherland in the early 17th century: In this session, participants will read and share extracts from ‘The History of the Earldom of Sutherland’ by Sir Robert Gordon, a valuable early source of the natural history of the area.