THE Jon Egging Trust has teamed up with one of the UK’s largest heritage companies to inspire young people about archaeology.

Wessex Archaeology is working with the charity’s Blue Skies Programme, through which selected teenage students are provided with a unique opportunity to build confidence and self-esteem and achieve training in work and life skills.

The firm’s involvement was initiated by Jon’s cousin Kirsten Dinwiddy, who is one of Wessex Archaelogy’s osteoarchaeolog-ists.

Youngsters will also benefit from expertise provided by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), which works with The Rifles to use archaeology to boost the recovery of soldiers injured in Afghanistan.

Two “inspiration days” will be held in May at the company’s head office in Salisbury, with a view to repeating them annually, to educate the teenagers about how and why archaeology is used and how remains may be interpreted.

They will be able to examine a range of artefacts and also take part in a practical archaeology day involving the excavation of a c.2700-year-old site on Salisbury Plain.

For further information contact Jennifer Williams at j.williams@wessexarch.co.uk