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Conservation

Staff

Explore the history of Bath & North East Somerset at Bath Record Office.

We look after the Archives collections which hold Designated Outstanding status and the rich and varied Local Studies collections. Our collections are available to everyone, free of charge.

Our Mission -

To collect, preserve, promote and provide access to archives and local studies collections relating to Bath & North East Somerset and its communities.

Our Vision -

To be the centre for learning, understanding and sharing Bath & North East Somerset’s history through its unique collections.

Our History -

Bath Record Office was established in 1967 and has remained at the heart of the historic World Heritage UNESCO City of Bath in the Grade I listed Guildhall ever since.

The Local Studies collections (formerly held at Bath Central Library) merged with the Record Office in 2017.

Copying service


Bath Record Office - copying charges
Commercial customers are charged at double the rate outlined in this schedule of charges
Scanning of items up to A0 size
Including up to 3 images	£8.00
Additional charge per image	£2.00

Photography of items up to A0 size unsuitable for scanning
Including up to 3 images	£10.00
Additional charge per image	£3.00

All charges are inclusive of VAT
Payment can be made online, please contact us for details

Research service

We are able to respond to enquiries and carry out limited research for free. For enquiries which require more than 30 minutes of research, we offer a paid research service.

What research can we carry out?

Family history research - whilst we cannot compile an entire family tree for you, we will be able to search resources such as Ancestry, Find My Past and British Newspaper Archive.
Building history research - including planning history, surviving architectural plans, summary of residents or short history of the use of the property.
Other research, subject to agreement with the Record Office staff.

Charges

£16 per hour inc. VAT, with a minimum charge of £16.

Commercial requests for research will be charged £32 per hour inc. VAT.

Maximum of 3 hours per request.

Copies of documents will be charged in addition to our research fee.

How to request paid research

Please e-mail us at [email protected]

Make sure that you:

tell us exactly the information you wish to find out.
include as much information as possible about individuals, locations, dates, and other relevant details.
mention any previous correspondence with us related to your current enquiry.

We shall provide a quote of the expected cost of the research on receipt of your request.

Payment can be made

By credit or debit card - we will send you instructions of how to pay via the Council website.
By cheque, made payable to Bath & North East Somerset Council and in sterling currency. We do not accept Eurocheques and cannot accept payments in a currency other than sterling.

Our commitment to you

Enquiries are dealt with as quickly as possible, but at busy times it may take up to 4 weeks for a full reply to be sent.

Your personal data

When you contact Bath Record Office: Archives and Local Studies by email, telephone or post to request research or make an enquiry, the Office collects and processes personal information such as name, contact details, and any information which you may give us, together with any information which we may give you in our response to your enquiry. We process this information in accordance with the terms of the General Data Protection Regulations (article 6.1e) and the Data protection Act 2018. Information you give us in enquiries and which we give you in our responses may occasionally include special categories of personal data. This is processed in accordance with article 9.2a of the General Data Processing Regulations. Neither the personal information nor the special category information will be shared with any other body or individual without your specific consent or unless allowed by law. Research enquiries received by email or post are kept for 1 year. Data from all research enquiries is kept for up to 5 years on a secure database and then deleted. We do not retain any personal or special category information permanently.

Conservation

Caring for our collections is a very important part of the work we do. It ensures collections remain as accessible as possible, for as long as possible.

Our paper conservator is responsible for the conservation and preservation of the collections held at Bath Record Office. Archive conservation includes continued preservation of the archives by maintaining a suitable storage environment, packaging and the physical repair and stabilisation of damaged material where appropriate. This requires expertise in paper and parchment material, maps and plans, photographic media and books.

As well as looking after our own collections, we provide advice and guidance to the public and carry out conservation work for individuals, companies and local organisations.

Please contact [email protected] for more details.

Awards, accreditations and standards

Bath Record Office: Archives and Local Studies was awarded Archive Service Accreditation in March 2021.

Archive Service Accreditation is the UK standard for archive services. It defines good practice and identifies agreed standards within the archive sector.
It is a UK wide quality standard which offers a benchmark for gauging performance, recognising achievement, and driving improvement within the archives sector.
Archive Service Accreditation is awarded by the UK Archive Service Accreditation Committee, representing the entire archive sector.
Archive Service Accreditation is supported by a UK-wide partnership of The National Archives, National Records of Scotland, Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, the Welsh Government through its Museums Archives and Libraries Wales Division, Archives and Records Association (UK & Ireland), Scottish Council on Archives, and Archives and Records Council Wales.

Bath Record Office's archive holdings are Designated as a Collection of Outstanding Importance. This award reflects the significance of the archives we hold - only a handful of other local authority record offices in the UK have their collections designated in this way.

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

About

Explore the history of Bath & North East Somerset at Bath Record Office.

Our Mission -

Our Vision -

Our History -

What research can we carry out?

Charges

How to request paid research

Payment can be made

Our commitment to you

Your personal data

Bath Record Office: Archives and Local Studies was awarded Archive Service Accreditation in March 2021.

Explore Bath's world heritage

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

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