In June 2025, Start Thurrock and Essex Cultural Diversity Project teamed up to invite proposals for a creative project that would explore new ways for the public to engage with Coalhouse Fort, a local landmark that’s beloved by the communities around it.
Celebrating the past and breathing life into the future
The late nineteenth-century fort is a Scheduled Monument (nationally protected) on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register, and has been closed to the public since 2020. Our aim was to celebrate diversity, provide a platform for marginalised voices, and allow residents to decide what kind of creative activity they want to experience in their own neighbourhoods. In particular, we wanted to help residents value and invest in the future of this important cultural asset on their doorstep.
Through an open call to Essex-based artists, Laura Trevail was commissioned. Laura’s work spans live performance, writing, sculpture, data relationships, human behaviour, horror, connected devices, and value exchange. A personal connection to the fort – described as an ‘emotional touchstone’ – combined with lived experience of impaired mobility in the hands, made Laura uniquely suited to ensure that accessibility and participation were central to the project. The starting point? To share ghost stories in multiple formats and collate them in various ways.
Despite the fort’s limited access due to its condition and protected status, Laura saw it as an opportunity to explore what broader access means from a place of empathy and connection. A programme of creative engagement was developed that included historical tours, photography, artists’ and writers’ days, collaborations with local artists, and other “goings on”, welcoming a diverse mix of participants. Temporary festival paths provided by Thurrock Council allowed for variable means of mobility and, by removing barriers and structuring work responsively, participants were encouraged to enjoy ownership of the space.
One memorable moment allowed visitors to leave their mark quite literally by placing their hands on the walls and Laura used thermal imaging to record their imprints. Each handprint became testament to the human connection people feel to the site and for Laura, they became symbols of resilience and continuity. This approach made sure every visitor, whatever their perspective, could leave a trace of themselves and carry away warmth of shared experience.
“I want to thank Start Thurrock and Essex Cultural Diversity Project for taking a punt on my seeking of curiosity and love through explorations of fear – both spookhouse and tender. To be able to write here, but more importantly, to be able to invite others, is a deep joy and a responsibility I value. I hope to do justice to this tenacious gathering of stones and lives. In these dark seasons, from a fortress with a gate held ajar, I raise a paper cafe-cup of greetings, with the ghosts.”
The next stage of the project will bring shared stories to life, connecting history, imagination, community voice and determined individuality.
Through immersive community engagement, creative interpretation and inclusive access, Laura has stirred this historic fort with its rich and complex past to become a living, breathing space once again where people can connect, explore and create their own memories.
