The National Archives

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The National Archives

The National Archives

The National Archives (TNA), formerly the Public Record Office, is at the heart of the nation’s history. It provides access to official records dating back to before the Domesday Book. It is the portal to our official history, which all members of the public have a right to access for free.

TNA is perhaps most famous for providing information so that the public can investigate their family history; it has been featured extensively on the BBC’s programme, Who do you think you are? It is also a vital resource for academic research.

TNA also helps government departments manage information more effectively and is at the cutting edge of both paper and digital preservation. PCS has over 300 members working at TNA in Kew.

These pages give you information on our concerns and how you can get in touch if you are having any problems at work.

Defending jobs and services at the archives

In July 2009 management at TNA told us that 10% cuts were necessary to make sure they could continue to operate. The proposals included job losses, closing the archives to the public one day a week, replacing the face-to-face welfare service with a telephone welfare helpline for staff and charging for the use of the car park.

We contacted some of the past participants of the BBC programme 'Who do you think you are' and we received a supportive statement from Ainsley Harriot:

"As a past participant of ‘Who do you think you are’ I’m offering my support to defend services at The National Archives (TNA). The proposals to cut 10% of the organisation’s budget concern me, as I think that members of the public looking up their family history will find it more difficult as there will be less staff and resources available at the archives to assist them.

When making the programme I found the staff at the archives really helpful and so I would encourage everyone to support the campaign to keep the archives well resourced and a valued treasure for future generations."

Campaigning throughout the summer

Since the announcement in July we have been working hard to reduce the impact on our staff and the public, however over 30 staff have left the archives.The archives is now closed to the public on a Monday and the telephone helpline for staff has been introduced.

We have successfully highlighted our concerns about financial inconsistencies within the organisation through parliamentary questions that have demonstrated a £6 million increase in the paybill. We believe much of this is due to some senior managers being appointed not only above the starting salary for the job, but above the band maximum.

Our members are still angry that they, along with the public, are paying for this over-spending with their jobs, closure of the TNA on a Monday and also the closure of the welfare service for staff.

Even though many of management’s proposals have been implemented we are still concerned about the impact they’ll have on our members and also the public, including:

An increased workload for members producing documents for members of the public and possibly increased waiting times for the public
Closure of services in the archives building at 5pm (coffee shop, museum and shop)
Extra expenditure on staff to cover weekend working as the archives shuts on a Monday
A move away from access to physical records towards digitisation - which could see the public effectively having to pay to access records

Our members want to provide a quality public service and we believe management’s plans will have a huge impact on the public's access to history.

For more information about us or to get involved contact us.