Gwynedd Archives Service Education Policy

Mission Statement

The aim of Gwynedd Archives Service is to protect the archival heritage of the county by collecting, preserving, giving access to and promoting the use of archives so that everyone can discover, learn and understand more about themselves and their community.

 

Education Vision Statement

Gwynedd Archives Education Service is dedicated to delivering a high-quality service across both Gwynedd Record Offices, while promoting a deeper understanding of history and heritage. We actively support the local community, including schools, colleges, and the wider public.

 

Aims

  • To promote greater awareness of the nature and role of the archives and their collections.
  • To promote the use made of the archives by schools and colleges, and of the collections and documents.
  • To enable the archives to make full use of the educational potential of its collections and resources.

 

Objectives

  • To ensure that education is seen as a core function at the Record Offices, and that the Education Service is considered an integral part in management and planning processes.
  • To develop educational activities which are targeted towards the needs of schools and colleges.
  • To be aware of new developments in formal education and to modify educational activities at the Record Offices in response to these developments.
  • To maintain close contact with other professionals in the field of archival education, and the field of education generally.
  • To develop an effective programme of INSET sessions to highlight the contribution archives and archival educational activities can make to the National Curriculum.

 

Audiences

The Education Officer will enhance the service to all members of the public visiting

the Record Offices, but will be concentrating on providing a service for the following

groups:

  • pupils and teachers from Gwynedd schools, both at primary and secondary level
  • adult education groups
  • educational institutions/organisations funded or partly funded by Cyngor Gwynedd or by another council source

 

Provision

A full educational service targeting the above audiences will be provided in the following way:

  • a request service for archival resources for schools
  • guided visits at the Record Office
  • educational activities aimed to answer the needs of the National Curriculum
  • educational resource packs for schools based on the National Curriculum
  • an outreach service based on visiting schools and colleges
  • temporary exhibitions/displays

 

Training

The Education Officer will enhance the service by ensuring a training programme for

staff and members of the educational institutions in the following way:

  • participating in specialised archive education courses
  • encouraging, participating in and providing in-service training for teachers in order to explain the value of archives in education and to outline their provision and scope of services
  • providing schools, colleges and universities with the opportunities for using the Record Offices to give their students experience in a working environment, as a preparation for future careers.  This includes work experience schemes and taking part in partnership schemes

 

Marketing

In order to keep people informed about the nature of the services provided and to attract new audiences, the Record Offices will promote the education service in the following ways:

  • training opportunities for schools such as INSET days
  • participation in meetings and courses held by advisory teachers
  • participating in courses for trainee-teachers at local colleges and universities

 

Evaluation

The service must be evaluated in order to ensure its continual effectiveness and credibility.  This will be carried out in the following ways:

  • detailed records of visitor figures
  • questionnaire following each visit or request for feedback
  • observation
  • participation in the Archive Service’s performance indicators and improvement plan
  • recording the number of requests for resources from individuals, schools and colleges

 

Review

This policy was approved by the Head of Economy and Community in 2025. It will be reviewed within 5 years or sooner if circumstances dictate