By Gabriel Princewill-
Lancaster University and the London School of Economics (LSE) have partnered with the Minecraft design company BlockWorks to create an engaging educational experience that teaches players about social inequality in Victorian London. The above initiative is based on the poverty maps of Victorian London created by social reformer Charles Booth between 1886 and 1903, which are housed in the LSE Library archive.
The news follows the LSE celebration of the top ranking in the TIMES and The Good University Guide as the number one university in the UK. This recognition, combined with its leadership in entrepreneurship, public engagement, and professional development, marks an exceptional year for an institution renowned for its outstanding quality of teaching and research. Its numerous partnerships and commercialisation of research truly set it apart.
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Interestingly, the launch of the World Build coincides with LSE’s 130th anniversary, during which the university will celebrate its historical and contemporary impact. The revolutionary maps created by Booth revealed the true extent of poverty in London at that time, with each street on the maps colour-coded to indicate the income and social class of its inhabitants, making them invaluable tools for visualising, quantifying social conditions, and identifying patterns of poverty.
Titled “Charles Booth’s London,” the world built is organised around six different ‘police walks’ that Booth undertook with his research assistant, George Duckworth. Together, they accompanied police officers on their beats in London, recording their observations along the way.
Each virtual walk features multiple activities designed to make history come alive and provide users with insight into Victorian London. Activities include conducting surveys of residents, building new Peabody apartments for families relocated from slums, shopping for families with differing socioeconomic statuses in Covent Garden, catching thieves in Seven Dials, cleaning chimneys, rat-catching, and clearing sewers in Bedford Square.
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The world built spans a significant portion of Bloomsbury, from Lincoln’s Inn Fields to the British Museum, and includes key landmarks such as the Royal Opera House and the LSE Library, where the adventure begins. Players are then transported back in time to the site of the old King’s College Hospital, which existed in the 1890s.
Developed through a knowledge exchange partnership between BlockWorks, Professor Sally Bushell, and Dr. Rebecca Hutcheon from Lancaster University, as well as staff at the LSE Library, this world build is primarily designed as an educational resource for children aged 10–15 and interested players of all ages. It comes with a learning booklet that provides more detailed information about the original Booth maps.
A version of the world build will be available for the public to play on the Minecraft Marketplace later this year.
Beth Clark, Associate Director of the Digital Scholarship and Innovation Group at LSE Library, commented on the project, stating, “We’re very excited about the release of this world build. The use of Minecraft Education enables the Library at LSE to engage new audiences in creative and innovative ways and bring history to life! LSE’s motto and founding purpose focus on understanding the causes of things for the betterment of society.
It seems very fitting, therefore, that we can share such a fantastic educational resource while celebrating our 130th anniversary.”
Professor Sally Bushell from Lancaster(pictured) University added: “The LSE world build was a fascinating project because it was so closely linked to the Booth Archive. I really enjoyed reading and mapping out the original walks in the notebooks held at LSE and then bringing them to life. I also love how BlockWorks created a model of the actual LSE Library today in the world build and then transported players back in time to when it was King’s College Hospital.”
– It took a team of 15 professional Minecraft builders and two academics over two years to create the world, comprising more than 45 million blocks.
– Over 1,000 new blocks and textures were added to create an accurate Victorian atmosphere, including various types of London bricks and wooden paving from Houghton Street.
– More than 200 characters have been included for players to interact with, featuring Charles Booth and other prominent figures from the survey team, including Beatrice Potter (later known as Beatrice Webb, who co-founded LSE).
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