Flintshire Record Office and Denbighshire Archives are looking to merge to create a joint archive service in a new Archive Centre. It will comprise a repository for archive material along with public research rooms, exhibition space and education facilities. Staff from both services have already been working on various joint projects throughout the year.
All the staff from both offices received Dementia Awareness training in February given by a Dementia Advisor from the Alzheimer’s Society, Wales (see photograph below). This was a very interesting and thought-provoking session which raised staff awareness of how to better support people with dementia, and their carers. A member of staff from each office then put this training to good use when they were invited to attend the April meeting of a Young Onset Dementia group held at the Cob and Pen in Rhyl. As Rhyl was in pre 1974 Flintshire but is now in Denbighshire, a member of staff from each office attended with copies of photographs, newspaper articles, trade directory adverts and maps selected from the collections of each office. These old photographs and maps generated much discussion and triggered lots of memories.
As 2019 sees the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War, in June of this year Flintshire Record Office and Denbighshire Archives launched a joint appeal for Second World War documents. Any addition of letters, diaries, photographs, personal and business papers during the period 1939-1945 will provide a valuable addition to our existing collections relating to the experiences of local people during the war.
More recently joint outreach events have included the well-attended North East Wales Heritage Fair at Wrexham Museum in July when a stall was hosted by an Archivist from each office. Information was requested about the holdings of each office relating to both local and family history.
The Denbighshire Archives ‘Unlocking the Asylum’ project staff spent some time working in the conservation studio at Flintshire Record Office making made to measure boxes for various volumes within the collection. The phase boxes will protect the volumes from dust and light pollution and further deterioration.
This was followed in August by staff from both offices running a stall at the Denbigh & Flint Show. Attendance at the show gave staff the opportunity to engage with people who hadn’t visited our services before and to inform them of future plans.
A Public Briefing document provides further information about the proposed merger, and this can be viewed online at www.flintshire.gov.uk/archives or http://archives.denbighshire.gov.uk/
Your opinion matters and all feedback will be gratefully received. You can complete an online questionnaire at: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/CanolfanArchifau-ArchiveCentre or complete a hard copy questionnaire in the office.
Steph Hines
Archivist
Flintshire Record Office
