Groups are becoming more savvy

We collect and promote community archives as part of our project (West Yorkshire: Our Stories funded by HLF). We find that through our ‘Network Group’, set up to bring together community archive groups, we are aware of any challenges and issues. 

Money continues to be a barrier but this will always be the case (and we trying to tackle this by offering free trainings and workshops as part of the project). Groups are becoming more savvy in contacting potential funders and securing finances. 

Through the Network Group, it has become apparent that groups clearly see the benefits of sharing information and ideas, and that they can grow through engagement with similar groups. This breaks down the tradition view of such groups as being ‘ territorial’ or sometimes suspicious of outside working. 

It has been a delight to see our group members evolve in this way and develop down different paths of specialism, e.g digitisation.