This 2021 award will go ahead as previous years and we hope it will be an opportunity to thank our volunteers for all their continued support and work over this very difficult time.
This year in particular we welcome projects which demonstrate how archives have supported volunteers through the past year and have adapted projects to suit their circumstances whether remotely or in new ways of working together…. but apart.
Winners will have a national platform to celebrate their volunteers’ contribution to the service and gain publicity for their archive’s role in supporting individuals and community through volunteering programmes.
Note that the timescale for applications has changed and the deadline date for 2021 will be 7 May 2021. Awards will be announced during Volunteers week 1-7 June.
2020 Award Winner was West Yorkshire Archive Service Anne Lister Diary Digitisation and Transcription Project
“The panel really liked WYAS’s Anne Lister Diary Digitisation and Transcription Project because of its clear focus, and how well planned it is. It is an excellent example of a remote volunteer project which enables both local and international engagement. It has attracted an audience who may never have used archives before, as well as raising the profile of the archive service.
It was very interesting to see applications where the project had focused on remote volunteering which is a relatively novel concept, or projects which adapted quickly to remote volunteering in the light of COVID-19.
The Archives and Records Association seeks to celebrate the role of volunteers in supporting archive services, and to collect good practice case studies to inform the wider sector. This award is a key strand of the work of ARA’s Volunteering in Archives, Action Plan, bringing to life the recommendations the ARA report Managing Volunteering in Archives. The award is also supported by The National Archives, the Welsh Government’s Museums, Arts, Archives and Libraries Division, and the Scottish Council on Archives.
This award is open to archives across the United Kingdom and Ireland. Awards will be publicised widely throughout and beyond the sector.
A short nomination form is available from the ARA website, here, and organisations may nominate projects, or ongoing volunteer programmes, that ran during 2020/2021.
Nominations will be assessed against three key outcomes:
A) Impact on volunteers
B) Impact on service
C) Wider impact
Completed nomination forms need to be returned to volunteeringaward@archives.org.uk by 7 May 2021.
If you have any queries about the award please contact Sally Bevan, Volunteering Awards Administrator, (020 7332 3820) or via volunteeringaward@archives.org.uk