Carlisle Archaeology - 'An inquiry is needed'

It's clear that bitterness over the closure still runs deep. In response to the article,
Mike McCarthy, who ran the unit and is now a senior lecturer, calls for an inquiry
into the closure. He accuses the client of 'harassing and interfering' with the unit
and heritage agencies of staging a 'coup d'etat' once fieldwork was over. Bradford
University says the affair 'raises many questions about the condition of
professional archaeology in Britain.' Read the replies below ...

Mike McCarthy: 'Here are some on the record comments for you.'

'At the time of, and for sometime after, the transfer from the City Council to the University, Carlisle Archaeology Limited (CAU) was winning a very high level of bids. That began to change and by the end of the first full operating year it was in deficit. This continued throughout the second year, not helped by the foot and mouth outbreak. As companies cannot legally trade whilst being insolvent, the University had little option but to opt for closure. The University did not have sufficient financial resources to continue underpinning the operation.'

'The Millennium scheme was a major project by any standards. The archaeological component had been worked on by CAU on behalf of the developer, Carlisle City Council, English Heritage and other interested parties over a number of years. It had undertaken all the fieldwork but the archaeological
programme was bedevilled by the client who [was] harassing and interfering with CAU throughout the last year of excavation. These are matters of record.'

Mike McCarthy goes on to say that during the excavation heritage agencies were very supportive.

'However, once the fieldwork was over, they quickly turned against CAU and effectively staged a rather nasty coup d'etat over the question of the post-excavation programme. The client wished
to get away with a minimalist contribution, but the data, including finds, required a much higher level of support.' Mike adds that heritage agencies rejected 'a solution which would have retained the
expertise of CAU.'

'The closure resulted in many members of staff who had acquired an unrivalled knowledge of a major frontier zone over many years being put on the spoil heap, as it were. It was as if they were of no consequence. It was handled with astonishing ineptitude and insensitivity. Some have re-trained to the profession's loss. These are trained, articulate, literate and experienced archaeologists. The
profession is not so well endowed that it can afford to lose such talent.'

'An inquiry is needed into the whole affair. There is certainly a great deal more that can be said on this shameful matter.'

Dr. Rick Jones on behalf of Bradford University:

'The University originally began negotiations with Carlisle City Council because we saw an opportunity to make links across the sectoral divisions in British archaeology. The University took over Carlisle Archaeological Unit for those motives. We saw mutual benefits in enhancing research and developing
archaeological practice. We hoped over time to initiate new projects that would build links between staff based in the Unit in Carlisle and in the University in Bradford. We saw many exciting possibilities in these areas, but all were dependent on the Unit's basic financial performance being satisfactory. The University did not expect to make financial gains from the Unit's work, but it
could not sustain losses either.'

'As it turned out, the overall financial performance of Carlisle Archaeology Ltd left the University no choice but to terminate its activities, with much regret. The Millennium Project resulted in many
exciting archaeological discoveries, and the University has co-operated with other responsible agencies to ensure that they will be fully published.'

'The whole episode raises many questions about the condition of professional archaeology in Britain. We remain convinced that there should be closer links across the sectors. The problem remains,
even if this attempt to achieve something sadly failed.'