What do you want to achieve from telling people about your site or object?  You might want to help local people and visitors to understand more about your heritage, to learn about it or to get them to help look after it. You may also want to boost the local economy through tourism or simply to help people enjoy your area. Your broad aims may be to attract more visitors, or you might want to manage your existing visitors better so that they use some routes and not others. You might want to change the way they behave or the way they think and feel about your site, or you might want to help people understand more about your organisation and the way it works.

Whatever your aims are, it is important that you know why you have decided to do an interpretive project and what you want to achieve, as this will guide the whole process.

Your team -  who should be involved and what skills do you need?
Most projects work best with a team of keen people bringing their interests and skills to share the tasks. Ideally you want to involve a good cross-section of people in your interpretation project, including the local community and representatives of organisations which work in the area.

• People who represent interests such as the Community Council, the chapels and churches and the schools

• People who have a detailed knowledge of the area, its wildlife and its history. This could include farmers, foresters and other landowners

• People who are involved with visitors such as the owners of shops, pubs, B&Bs and hotels and others

• People with special skills such as writing, researching, performing arts or design expertise

 
Whatever kind of interpretation project you’re thinking about, you’ll need people who can help with planning and researching as well as actually producing your interpretation.  There’s often a surprising range of skills hidden in your local community so it’s worth asking around to

find out who could help you. You can do this by:

• talking to as many people as possible

• asking for help through the local media

• asking local groups and schools

• holding a public event or gathering to tell people what you are planning to do and asking for their help

There may be artists, illustrators, performers, writers, photographers, historians, wildlife enthusiasts, carpenters and builders out there - all waiting to be asked to help out!
The Brecon Beacons National Park Authority’s Interpretation Officer can also give you advice on your project. It’s worth thinking through the basics of the planning process outlined in Section D of this toolkit beforehand, so that you have a good overview of the stages involved and know the areas where you would like more help and advice. There is a pre-contact check list to help you in Appendix 1.