Bristol charity criticises council's proposed archive cutbacks - it will damage the city

On February 25, Bristol City Council proposed budget cuts which included a 25% reduction in the opening hours of the Search Room at Bristol Archives in B Bond Warehouse, saving £35,000 annually. This would mean the archive would open three days a week instead of four.

The Friends of Bristol Museums, Galleries and Archives charity have commented these new cuts to opening hours could put the council in breach of meeting its obligations in running the archive.

The archive is only open one Saturday per month and extended opening on Thursday evening was cut a few years. The new restrictions would further restrict the opportunities for community engagement, for academic and educational research and for citizens to access what is held in their name, particularly for those who can only visit outside of their working hours.

As an Accredited Archive under the National Archives Accreditation Scheme, Bristol Archives is obliged to collect, preserve and provide reasonable access to the archives it holds.

The Friends charity warned that the “reasonable access” may come into question with the reduction of opening hours, and the award of Accreditation may be at risk, reducing the chances of being successful in applying for external grants.

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Sue Thurlow, Chair of the Friends of Bristol Museums, Galleries and Archives, said: “These short-sighted proposals will damage the availability of collections to local communities and lead to further reputational damage to Bristol City Council.

“Bristol Archives is accredited nationally partly on the service provided but also on the quality of the archive collections which are considered to be among the very best of any city outside London.

“As such they are an exceptionally important research tool for academics from our local universities and from around the world, given Bristol’s importance as a trading port in Empire and perhaps especially around the period of Trans-Atlantic Slavery. Arts Council England has also recognised that Bristol Archives holds ‘Designated’ collections that are of national and international importance.

“As well as professional researchers, Bristol Archives support an army of individual members of the public researching their family history or other aspects of the history of the city, community groups use the archives for research into their neighbourhood and there are the commercial users including filmmakers and publishers who also provide income. All will be impacted by a reduction in services.

“In December we celebrated 100 years of Bristol Archives at an incredible event at Bristol Beacon that showcased the City’s fantastic collection of rare Bristol cine film that was projected onto a massive screen as the Bristol Youth Orchestra performed.

“The link between archives and the cultural health and well-being of the city cannot be underestimated and the proposed service reduction will be a massive body blow to the dedicated Bristol Archives team at B Bond Warehouse.

“The council believes it is saving £35,000 but the cuts in access could reduce the amount that film makers and commercial users pay, so it is a false economy. The Archives is a cultural service in the Western Harbour area, which the council is keen to develop.”

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