Historic Buildings

Reconnecting the Rooms

“For posh people and tourists”. “Intimidating and unwelcome”. “Not for me”. A selection of responses provided by locals about the city’s heritage. Bath is a place of juxtaposition. Affluent but with a growing inequality gap. Culturally rich but where most communities feel disconnected from heritage. The heritage sector needs to respond as a collective, playing our part to make Bath a more inclusive and fairer city. Reconnecting the Rooms aims to use the ethos of Bath Assembly Rooms (BAR) – a place for diverse social assembly – to bring people together to reduce loneliness, improve connection with the city’s heritage, develop skills, and deliver public benefit. Our legacy is for BAR to be an ongoing place of 21st century assembly (e.g. queer ballroom dances, music therapy or climate cafes), serving a more diverse audience, celebrating personal heritage and honouring communities from all backgrounds that were, and remain, integral to Bath’s history.