With over 1,000 members globally, the IWM War and Conflict Subject Specialist Network builds capacity, connections and confidence in the cultural heritage sector.

Network members look at a range of themes and subjects within the period of the First World War to the present day.

Our aim is to share and develop knowledge and skills amongst many diverse organisations and individuals across the UK and further afield.

Terms and conditions

Join for free today
Membership to the network is free and available for anyone working on not-for-profit activity relating to conflict since 1914.

Benefits for Network Members

Neighbours chatting as normal despite the restrictions of their gas masks during a practice drill in Southend.

More Information

  • A teacher and her pupils enjoy a lesson in a basement at Greek Road School in South East London in 1941.
    © IWM (D 3161)

    Connecting, Sharing, Learning project

    Between July 2020 and June 2021, IWM’s War and Conflict Subject Specialist Network (WCSSN) led a project called Connecting, sharing, learning: sustaining relationships between collections and older communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Find out more

  • An abstract aerial view of a bombing raid on a city.
    © IWM Art.IWM ART LD 4526 Battle of Germany by Paul Nash

    IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund

    A national partnership programme of 22 artist commissions inspired by the heritage of conflict. Led by Imperial War Museums, the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund was created following the success of 14-18 NOW, the official UK arts programme for the First World War centenary. A total of £2.5 million has been made available to artists and cultural organisations across the UK, including several SSN members. 

    Find out more.

  • British and US navy crews shaking hands between ships.
    © IWM (A 730)

    About the SSN

    Read about what the SSN is, how we work and what we offer to members.

    Members Agreement

    Terms and Conditions of membership

    Frequently Asked Questions

     

Latest Blog Posts

  • 14/03/24 Partnerships
    Older man with cane stands in front of shop window with illustration of his likeness
    Guest Author - Paula Denton, CEO Our Big PIcture
    Friends, Foes and Good Companions: A Journey Through the Cod Wars

    The Cod Wars, a series of confrontations between Iceland and the UK overfishing rights in the North Atlantic, have been a topic of discussion for decades. However, the impact of this conflict on the fishing industry and the communities involved has often been overlooked. That's where the "Friends, Foes and Good Companions" exhibition comes in. This reportage artwork has been created by artist Olivier Kugler and writer Andrew Humphreys, commissioned by the Imperial War Museums – IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund in partnership with Our Big Picture and supported by Arts Council England. The exhibition ran from

  • 01/03/24 Partnerships
    (Left) Portrait of Mabel Wulff, nee Phillips; (Right) Mabel and her husband Max Wulff
    Guest authors: Madeleine Resühr and Andrew Hemmings
    Two countries, two wars: the story of Mabel Wulff, BEM

    Research has been undertaken into the story of Mabel Wulff, who born in Newport in Wales but lived for many years in Germany. In this blog post, Madeleine Resühr and Andrew Hemmings share details of Mabel's extraordinary life, which spanned the two world wars and beyond.

  • 01/03/24 Partnerships
    Title screen for Sunken Warships: Secrets from the Deep
    Guest author: Jason Davidson, Squeaky Pedal
    The Joy of the Archive Jigsaw

    Jason Davidson, producer/director and co-owner of the award winning production company Squeaky Pedal, shares his reflections on exploring the IWM film archive for a new TV series entitled Sunken Warships: Secrets from the Deep.

  • 22/02/24 Partnerships
    Five works of art hang under purple hued light, with woman standing in front.
    Guest Author - Dr. Lee Karen Stow, Visual Artist & Researcher
    Reflections on Tomorrow

    In 2023, five women artists who survived war, conflict and persecution, came together as visual artists to present Tomorrow, a multi-media, studio exhibition. Developed as an IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund commission in partnership with the Freedom Festival, the exhibition is an individual and collective response to the concept of ‘tomorrow’ as an enduring reference to hope, belief and self-determination and a way of looking to the future, together.

  • 02/02/24 Partnerships
    Row of seven white headstones
    Guest author: Dr. Bruce A. Tocher
    Remembering Operation Freshman: Norway, 1942

    In July 1942, the British War Cabinet decided to try to destroy the heavy water production facilities at the Norsk Hydro factory at Vemork, Norway - this was code-named Operation Freshman. Guest author Dr. Bruce A. Tocher shares his research into this operation, and efforts to trace descendants of those involved.

  • 02/02/24 Partnerships
    Pilot standing in front of aircraft
    Guest author: James P. Brew
    Aqaba, the Arab Revolt and Australia

    The Emir Feisal’s victory in taking Aqaba in July 1917 was of considerable strategic significance to the outcome of the First World War. The holding of Aqaba was, however, in the challenging days of 1917, not guaranteed. In this blog post, guest author James P. Brew shares his research into the role of Australian servicemen in this theatre of war.

  • 23/01/24 Partnerships
    Stitching into the printed map of Radom
    Guest author: Laura Nathan, contemporary textiles artist
    Engaging With Inherited Archives

    Laura Nathan is a contemporary textiles artist and through the support of an Arts Council England artist development grant (DYCP), she is currently exploring family archives surrounding her grandparents’ Holocaust narratives. In this blog post, Laura shares her reflections on the project.

  • 16/01/24 Partnerships
    a prisoner sitting at a desk, looking thoughtful
    Guest author: Dr Frances Hurd
    Conscription and reform of the British penal system

    When the British government introduced conscription in 1916, no-one anticipated that this would lead to large numbers of conscientious objectors (COs) being held in civilian prisons, much less that it would have significant consequences for prison reform. In this post, Dr Frances Hurd shares her research into this topic.

  • 21/12/23 Partnerships
    Projection of a man lying on a floor
    Charlotte Pearce, IWM Partnerships Manager
    Finding an artist for the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund

    In summer 2023, Imperial War Museums (IWM) worked with Art School Plus and The Brickworks Museum to offer an exciting commissioning opportunity to an early-career artist as part of the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund. The programme supports more than 20 cultural organisations from across the UK to commission ambitious new artworks inspired by the heritage of conflict, created by world-leading and emerging contemporary artists.