Stories from Witham’s past can now be heard in the surroundings of one of the town’s popular parks.

Historic archive recordings featuring memories of the town are now available to listen to at Maldon Road Park, thanks to a new listening bench.

Funded by The National Lottery, the bench was unveiled in a central spot at the park as part of the Essex Record Office’s project You Are Hear: sound and a sense of place.

The recordings featured have been collated together by volunteer residents from the town with support from groups including Witham and Countryside Society, Witham Town Council and Braintree Council.

Clips on the bench include memories from Pinkham’s iconic glove factory, the opening of Bramston Road School which later became Maltings Academy, the old harness maker’s shop in Newland Street and memories of domestic services in Witham.

Susan Barker, Essex County Councillor responsible for culture, communities and customers, was at the unveiling of the bench on Saturday.

She said “I’m thrilled and heartened to see local people taking pride in their communities, working with the You Are Hear project not only in preserving but also bringing local history alive, through these benches.”

Similar benches have already been installed throughout Essex, including in Great Dunmow, Kelvedon and Coggeshall.

The last bench will be unveiled in Burnham-on-Crouch in the coming weeks bringing the project to completion.

For more information about the project, visit www.essexrecordofficeblog.co.uk/you-are-hear.

The recordings have also been digitised and are available at: www.soundcloud.com/essex-record-office.