Rachel graduated from the University of Durham with a BA in Archaeology and Anthropology and has worked in the North West for more than 30 years, during that time gaining a wealth of knowledge about the archaeology of the region. She acts as Senior Executive Officer: Research and Publications at OA North, in which role she oversees the post-excavation programme from post-excavation assessments through to publications. From its instigation, she has been the Series Editor for the Lancaster Imprints monographs and has overseen the development of the Greater Manchester’s Past Revealed series. She also has an overview of community and research project undertaken by the office.

Rachel has a deep commitment to the archaeology of the region, with a specialism in the early medieval period. She acted as period coordinator for this during the compilation of the North West Regional Archaeological Research Framework, working also as a member of its steering group. She was also a member of the steering group for the Hadrian’s Wall Research Framework, and has acted as a committee member for the last two Hadrian’s Wall Pilgrimages and also the 2019 event, and the International Limes Congress, held in Newcastle in 2009. She is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, President of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society, and Trustee of both the Senhouse Museum Trust and the Mouswald Trust, as well as being active in other local societies.

Rebecca Nicholson graduated with a BA (Hons) in Archaeology and History from the University of York, followed by an MA in Environmental Archaeology and Palaeoeconomy (University of Sheffield) and a D.Phil (University of York). Her professional career started in the 1980s as a technician in the Environmental Archaeology Unit at the University of York, followed by employment as environmental archaeologist for a commercial archaeological unit in Newcastle and academic research posts at the Universities of York and Bradford. She joined Oxford Archaeology as Environmental Manager in 2005.

Rebecca is responsible for designing and co-ordinating the sampling programmes for OAS excavations and liaises with other specialists within and outside OA to ensure high academic standards and to provide an effective outcome for our clients. Her specialism is archaeozoology, particularly the study of fish remains and fishing through the ages, and she has worked on many assemblages mostly from England and Scotland. Rebecca also has an editorial role in other post-excavation projects.

She is a Member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (MCIfA), a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (FSA Scot), and member of the Association for Environmental Archaeology.