Archives service overview
The role of the Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Archive Service is to locate, collect and preserve archives relating to past and present life in Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent and to make them available to the people of Staffordshire and its visitors.
The Archive Service is administered under a Joint Agreement for Archive Services and is jointly funded by Staffordshire County Council and Stoke on Trent City Council. It is accountable to the Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Joint Archives Committee, made up of elected members of the two local Authorities, and is run according to a range of Plans, Policies and Strategies approved by the Committee.
Since November 2012 the Archive Service and the Staffordshire County Museum Service have been jointly managed as the Archives and Heritage Service, within the Economy, Infrastructure and Skills Directorate. In the City of Stoke-on-Trent, the Archive Service forms part of the Directorate of Strategy and Resources.
Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Archive Service is a member of Archives West Midlands. This is a charitable organisation which is a strategic partnership of archive services in the West Midlands. As a member the service benefits from regional projects and sharing knowledge and expertise.
Our Record Offices
Two record offices form the Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Archive Service:
Lichfield Record Office closed at the end of December 2017. Records formerly held can now be consulted at Staffordshire Record Office. As some of the records are held at an out-store, and require a minimum of two working days' notice for production, please check our online catalogue, Gateway to the Past, or contact the record office, in advance of your visit regarding availability.
We also have family and local history sources available for Burton at Burton Family and Local History Centre in Burton Library. The William Salt Library in Stafford is also run closely with the Archive Service.
Contact
If you would like to enquire about the Archives service, please call Joanna Terry, Head of Archives and Heritage on 01785 278380.