Across the country, the National Festival of Archaeology will take place between 19th July and 3rd August. As part of the celebration, Ashby's St Helen's Church have organised a series of events to dig into the town's rich past. 

Kicking off events on Tuesday 8th July, Project Officer at University of Leicester Archaeological Services John Thomas will be giving a talk on the Burrough Hill Iron Age Hillfort. Having worked as a professional archaeologist since 1986, John has an extensive knowledge of field and post excavation techniques. Between 2010 and 2014, John co-directed the research excavation at Burrough Hill and will give attendees his expert insight into the Iron Age Hillfort. 

This will be followed by Guided Tours of St Helen's Churchyard on Saturday 12th July. This fascinating tour will include stories of the notable people buried in the churchyard, as well as the fascinating take of the body snatchers and interesting insights into what we can learn about a church from studying the outside. 

Furthermore, there will also be a tour of church itself on Friday 25th July at 2pm. These tours are free to take part in, but donations are welcome. This tour will take you round the Grade 1 listed 15th century church, showing attendees England's only pilgrim memorial and one of just two finger pillories in the country. To get involved, there is no need to book, just meet outside the church at 2pm. 

There are also more Festival of Archaeology events taking place across Leicestershire, click here to find out more.