Updated 28 May 2021

An interactive heritage trail is being launched this week on the streets of Barking Town Centre. 

The Barking Heritage Trail is part of the Pen to Print The Digital Storytelling Trail a new Pen to Print project that can be accessed on a smart phone using the pioneering Street Tag app, using augmented reality technology to encourage people to tour the streets of Barking & Dagenham to discover its rich history and tell their own stories.

Launching this week The Barking Heritage Trail is a dynamic new collaborative project, using content developed by Barking’s heritage volunteers, with backing from Pen to Print, Valence House archives, Be First, National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council, England.

The Street Tag app allows users to watch video, see images from the local archives, hear stories and read about Barking’s past at key sites such as the Abbey ruins, the Curfew Tower and Town Quay.  Crucially, participants can also add their own photos, reminiscences and even poems, and the app rewards participants who walk and share the most.

Pen to Print writers have contributed to the creative content of the first Digital Storytelling Trail in Barking with the contributions of the Love Letters to the World project sharing their messages of hope digitally, with more content being added all the time.

Focusing on the the existing Barking Trails and on The Becontree Estate in Dagenham, over the coming months we are looking for you to contribute your own stories too.

For more infomation including how you can download Street Tag and access the trails or contribute your own stories visit the Digital Storytelling Trail webpage at pentoprint.org/digital-storytelling-trail