Fieldwork Opportunities

The summer has a wealth of opportunities to get involved in fieldwork in Britain and Ireland. Here we list some of the best projects you can go on. We will continue to update this list as news of other fieldwork comes in.

Looking for a bit of inspiration? Why not try using the links below to get you started:

Dig for a Day ¦ Roman Digs ¦ Digs Suitable for Children ¦ Completely Free Digs


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Free | Free (membership fee required) | £1-£25 | £26-£100 | £101-£250 | £251-£500 | £500+

Archeoscan

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

Join Archeoscan on excavations in Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds.  The first excavation commences in April, and will focus on the excavation of a large Roman compound site in Gloucestershire. This project aims to discover the full footprint of the buildings and reveal the layout of the compound.

£40

Hanwell Park

Hanwell Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Join this year’s excavation of Hanwell Park, led by Polyolbion Archaeology. This year marks the final season of work at the site of the seventeenth-century garden pavilion: ‘The House of Diversion’ with its extraordinary collection of garden urns. Further areas of investigation will be opened within the park to further understand what the layout of the garden may have looked like, and to bring the site to life.

Free

Rocky Clump

Stanmer Brighton, East Sussex, United Kingdom

Discover past Prehistoric and Roman settlements of Sussex and join Brighton and Hove Archaeological Society excavating a late Iron Age and Early Roman site near Brighton. The site comprises an enclosure which contained structures, including a granary and a grain storage pit. This season, the excavation will move westwards examining a large pit dated to the Middle Bronze Age and features dated to the Iron Age and Roman periods.

Free

Romans in Kent Dig

Swale District Abbey Street, Faversham, United Kingdom

Excavate with Kent Archaeological Field School and discover Kent's Roman past. The training school offers a number of different dates and sessions, each with a different focus, exploring archaeological aspects of the Roman occupation of Britain.

Free

Bridge Farm Roman Settlement

Bridge Farm Barcombe Mills, Near Lewes, East Sussex, United Kingdom

Excavate and discover Bridge Farm, a Romano-British settlement located in East Sussex which was discovered in 2011. Excavation since 2013 has revealed a road network, a possible aisled building, a stone-lined well, a series of industrial hearths and a wealth of postholes, pits and ditches; all very finds-rich with deeper features also producing organic finds such as carved timbers. The comprehensive undergraduate-level training course seeks to cover all aspects of practical fieldwork offering geophysics, surveying, recording, drawing, photography, environmental and general finds processing, as well as excavation, on this regionally important site.

£6

Soulton Hall

Soulton Hall Soulton Hall, Wem, Shropshire, United Kingdom

DigVentures is crowdfunding a dig to investigate a medieval monument, in the middle of a moat!
At Soulton, DigVentures is trying to discover the origins of a scheduled ancient monument whose story had long since been lost to time. The water-logged conditions of the moat have preserved many artefacts that rarely survive, including a medieval leather shoe, acorns, and even the remains of a medieval wooden moat-bridge.

£290 – £1375

Welby Archaeological Training Excavation

Welby Welby, Leicestershire, United Kingdom

Join Mercian Archaeological Services CIC in the beautiful Leicester countryside for this week-long training excavation, which focuses on the teaching of archaeological excavation methods. As well as offering the very best in archaeological training and support, this training excavation is tailored towards enabling attendees to fulfil requirements of the Archaeological Skills Passport.

£350 – £450

Strata Florida Field School

Mynachlog Fawr Mynachlog Fawr, Abbey Road, Pontrhydfendigaid, United Kingdom

Excavate thousands of years of history and uncover the remains of the internationally significant 12th-century Cistercian Abbey of Strata Florida. The Strata Florida Field School offers an accessible and inclusive training programme, including a wide variety of archaeological excavation and survey techniques, from understanding how to use a trowel correctly to the collection of geophysical data for archaeological mapping.

£75 – £495

Cock’s Farm Roman Villa

Abinger Roman Villa Abinger Roman Villa, Surrey, United Kingdom

Join the dig led by Surrey Archaeological Society’s Roman Studies Group and discover Abinger Roman villa. Following work in the scheduled area of the villa, the focus has moved to the adjoining field where magnetometry had revealed a wealth of pits and ditches. The 2023 excavation will continue to explore further magnetometry features.

Free

Achill Archaeological Field School

Tawnaghmore, County Mayo Achill Island, County Mayo, Ireland

Achill Archaeological Field School has run for over three decades and offers a wide range of archaeology courses designed to suit all interests and budgets. This year’s dig will focus on a deserted settlement of 16 houses at Tawnaghmore, a short walk from the campus in Dooagh. The excavation aims to identify the site’s timeline more precisely.

€850 – €5500

Sedgeford Historical and Archaeological Research Project (SHARP)

Sedgeford, Norfolk, UK Sedgeford, Norfolk, United Kingdom

Established in 1996, SHARP is one of the largest independent archaeological projects in Britain and is firmly rooted in the local community. The 2023 season will continue excavations of a series of Anglo-Saxon malting buildings (see CA 379). New malting kilns were identified last season, and this year the project aims to investigate more.

£150 – £480

Elsyng Royal Palace

Forty Hall, Enfield Forty Hall, Enfield, United Kingdom

This summer marks the 20th season of Enfield Archaeological Society’s excavations at Henry VIII’s royal palace of Elsyng in the parkland surrounding the early 17th-century Forty Hall, Enfield. This year’s exploration of this scheduled ancient monument will focus on the inner gatehouse, which would have been one of the largest buildings in the complex.

Free

The Sherwood Forest Archaeological Training Field School

King John’s Palace Sherwood Forest, United Kingdom

This field school offers experience in many aspects of archaeological excavation and hands-on training from archaeological professionals in the heart of Sherwood Forest. The field school will explore the history and archaeology of Sherwood Forest, including the designed royal hunting landscape and Palace at its heart.

£90

Petersfield Big Dig

Petersfield Petersfield, Petersfield, Hampshire, United Kingdom

Join the Petersfield Big Dig, a two-week Test Pit Excavation in the medieval town of Petersfield. Marking the 50th Anniversary of the Petersfield Historical and Archaeological Society, and participating in the Festival of Archaeology, the 1st year of this exciting new project seeks to investigate a number of private gardens and public green spaces.

£8

Archaeology Experience Weekend

Copped Hall Copped Hall, Crown Hill, Epping, United Kingdom

Are you interested in learning the basic techniques of excavation and finds-handling, or the principles of geo-physics surveying, on an archaeological site? If so, you can join an Archaeology Experience Weekend run by Copped Hall Trust. Designed for absolute beginners, people of all ages (8 years and above) and backgrounds are welcome.

£60

Cerne Abbey

Cerne Abbas, Dorset Cerne Abbas, Dorset, United Kingdom

Founded in AD 987 by Æthelmaer the Stout, Cerne Abbey sits at the feet of the famous chalk-cut figure of a club-wielding giant that dominates the village of Cerne Abbas. Ground Penetrating Radar survey has provided the first-ever evidence for the medieval abbey, and potentially its Anglo-Saxon predecessor beneath. Excavation this summer will investigate these results, targeting buildings potentially belonging to the abbey precinct and exploring for the earlier 10th-century monastery below.

£80

Caerfai Promontory Fort

St Davids St Davids, Pembrokeshire, United Kingdom

The DigVentures team is unearthing the story of Caerfai, a prehistoric coastal fort that is being eroded into the sea. Within Caerfai’s ramparts, there are important clues that can help to reveal its history including roundhouses, hearths, metalworking debris, tools, and more. Join the team to rescue what is left of Caerfai and discover its archaeological story.

£350

King’s Park

Stirling, Scotland King's Park, Stirling, United Kingdom

The King’s Park is the oldest Royal Park in Scotland, surrounding the country’s ancient capital, Stirling Castle. Current investigations are exploring a late prehistoric fort located in the park. The excavation is part of a long-term series of projects designed to explore the late prehistoric settlement patterns of the Forth Valley.

£55

Petersfield Excavation

Petersfield Petersfield, Petersfield, Hampshire, United Kingdom

Liss Archaeology are continuing an exploration of an area near Petersfield with evidence for previously unknown Iron Age/ Romano-British artefacts and features. Training is available in all aspects of archaeology, including excavation, finds processing, sieving, soil analysis, recording, and drawing.

£8

Bainbridge Archaeological Training Excavation

Bainbridge Wensleydale, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Join Mercian Archaeological Services CIC in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales for this week-long training excavation, which focuses on the teaching of archaeological excavation methods. As well as offering the very best in archaeological training and support, this excavation is tailored towards enabling attendees to fulfil requirements of the Archaeological Skills Passport.

£350 – £450

Lindisfarne Finds Room

Holy Island, Northumberland Lindisfarne, Northumberland, United Kingdom

DigVentures is exploring the lost history of Lindisfarne, an important religious centre established by the Kings of Northumbria during the 7th-century. Lindisfarne is the site where where monks created the Lindisfarne Gospels, and where skilled artisans forged the treasures that adorned the altars of early Medieval Europe. Participants will be able to gain comprehensive experience in the full range of skills, knowledge and techniques that the finds team uses on-site.

£160

Topographic Survey Training Course

King John’s Palace Sherwood Forest, United Kingdom

Join Mercian Archaeological Services CIC and explore archaeology through GPS and Total Station methodologies. In archaeology, the ability to measure the location of a site, artefact, or earthwork is essential. This course will teach the required skills that are used on excavations and other sites for locating features using GPS and Total Station.

£350 – £450

Sudeley Castle

Sudeley Castle Sudeley Castle, Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

Join DigVentures and unearth archaeology fit for a Queen at Sudeley Castle. There are important historical ruins buried in the grounds of the Castle; ruins that hold clues about Thomas Seymour and his love for Queen Catherine Parr, proof of a temporary palace built for Elizabeth I, traces of the power that upheld the Tudor throne, and evidence for the final destruction of Winchcombe Abbey.

£190

Post-Fieldwork Training School 2023

King John’s Palace Sherwood Forest, United Kingdom

This training school is designed to provide training and experience in various aspects of the post excavation process. The course provides experience in handling finds and developing the ability to look at artefacts critically with a view to recognising the clues that can help identify them and provide evidence of what they were used for. Participants will also learn basic archaeological GIS (Geographic Information Systems) including working with survey data, preparing maps, working with historic mapping, creating layouts and exporting data.

£350 – £450

Fordham Hall

Fordham Fordham, Essex, United Kingdom

Join the Colchester Archaeological Group (CAG) and Fordham Local History & Archaeological Society for an excavation at Fordham Hall, Essex.

Free

Introduction to GIS in Archaeology

King John’s Palace Sherwood Forest, United Kingdom

Join Mercian Archaeological Services and learn how GIS software can reveal different archaeological features and past landscapes. This training school is designed to provide an introduction to using GIS (Geographic Information Systems) using QGIS software for archaeology. Participants will work with survey data and learn how to create maps, vector layers geo-reference raster images, work with LiDAR data, create and work with 3D models, create layouts, and export data.

£250