Leys time team wants stories

Leys Time Team, based in the Leys Linx Centre in Blackbird Leys Road, is planning an exhibition based on the lives of people who have settled in Blackbird Leys and Greater Leys.

The group is collecting memorabilia from the estate's different communities, and wants more people to share their memories of life before and after they arrived on the estate.

Organisers plan to display contributed photographs, stories and video clips at the Blackbird Leys Community Centre.

They also aim to create a constantly evolving living library on the Internet which will be regularly updated with new pictures and opportunities for people to add their own memories.

Jim Barlow, coordinator of Leys Learning Community, said more than 300 photographs had been donated so far.

Short video clips, and news clippings have also been donated, and volunteers have begun to transcribe the life stories of people that have spoken to the time team.

Mr Barlow said: "We want it to be a chance to celebrate the lives that people have led - the experiences, the memories, all the good times and some of the bad times.

"We need people to see that their lives are valuable and interesting and significant. It is quite a humbling experience to listen to people telling their life stories. It gives you a sense of perspective on things."

Mr Barlow said memories already shared with the group included Prince Charles's visit to the estate in the early 1990s, some photographs of early DJ equipment in the 1970s and the memories of a man who grew up in a police house on the estate.

He added: "There are 13,000 people living here, and an astonishing variety of stories.

"Whether somebody has been here for 50 years or five we are interested in the story of how they came here."

The group also plans to create a detailed timeline of the estate for the exhibition.

The exhibition will start at the beginning of October and run until December. The living library will go online in December. Call Mr Barlow on 07920 211405.