Message from the Senior University Archivist, Elen Simpson, relating to the recent Financial Sustainability Consultation
I write to inform you of the outcome of the consultation process recently undertaken at 91¿ì»îÁÖ. The Executive Board has now reviewed all the responses received during the consultation and has made several decisions which will ensure that the £15m savings which the University was required to make, is delivered. These changes have been made to secure the sustainable financial sustainability of the University, whilst seeking to mitigate impact on our staff, students and communities.
In Professional Services, savings have been modified, and the Archive and Special Collections team have been maintained, with a small reduction in staffing hours agreed. This will ensure that the service remains resilient and sustainable, and that the collections in our care are preserved for future generations and made accessible to all our stakeholders.
The Archives and Special Collections will also be re-positioned within the University structure, moving to a new directorate, known as the ‘Governance, Legal and Civic Directorate’, overseen by the University Secretary. This will provide us with closer working opportunities with other teams within the University Secretary’s portfolio, where there are natural synergies.
Opening Hours
As a result of the changes the opening hours of our reading room will be reduced from 30 hours to 21 hours per week. This will provide the staff with invaluable time to work with the collections more closely outside these hours, in terms of cataloguing, preservation work and providing online access to certain manuscripts.
From the 1 September 2025 the reading room will be open to all, by appointment, every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 9.30-4.30. The reading room will not be open on Mondays and Tuesdays, but the Education Room will be available throughout the working week for student teaching sessions.
Fees
As we look to the future, the Archives and Special Collections will need to evolve and become more commercial in its focus. There will be changes in the fees that we charge, and new fees introduced for certain services.
For example, we will be charging £20 per half hour for any research work undertaken by the staff on behalf of external users and the cost of a daily and weekly photographic permit for external users will increase to £7.50 and £10 respectively.
Thank You
On behalf of all the staff in the Archives and Special Collections, I would like to thank you personally for your support over the last few months. Your words of support and your understanding and appreciation of the immense value of the University’s archival collections has been overwhelming and has certainly made a difference to the outcome of this consultation.
We are now looking to the future, to working together with all our stakeholders to ensure that we continue to be recognised as one of the finest University archives in Britain - collecting, preserving and providing access to the historic collections that help make 91¿ì»îÁÖ a unique and special institution for everyone.