Stories about previous occupants of a property can be scandalous, romantic, dramatic or reflective of a moment in time – and Islanders are being offered the opportunity to discover exactly what history lies behind their home as part of a new Jersey Heritage community project.

Nominations for properties are being sought for the ‘Your Home, Your Story’ series of free talks, which will start in 2023. If a home is chosen, staff at Jersey Archive will research it’s past and delve into the stories about the surrounding area and the people who lived there.

Stuart Nicolle, Senior Archivist at Jersey Heritage, explained that all people needed to do to take part in the project was to fill in a nomination form giving details of the name of the property, exactly where it is and why it should be chosen.

He said: “We want people to nominate all types of homes, from flats and cottages, to town houses and country residences. You might want to get together with neighbours and nominate your estate or block of flats. We will then pick eight winners and each talk will include a section about the property in question, as well as details about the neighbourhood.

“If their home is not chosen, we would still encourage Islanders to come to Jersey Archive and, with staff assistance, carry out research on the property. We’re also planning to use one of our Saturday morning openings in 2023 to help as many people as possible research their property history.”

‘Your Home, Your Story’ nomination forms are available at Jersey Heritage visitor sites and Parish Halls and can be posted to Jersey Archive, Clarence Road, St Helier, JE2 4JY. An online form is available at www.jerseyheritage.org/yourhomeyourstory and nominations can also be emailed to archives@jerseyheritage.org.

The closing date for nominations is 9 December 2022. The chosen homes will be announced in January 2023 and the ‘Your Home, Your Story’ talks will take place on the third Saturday of the month throughout 2023.