The National Archives is planning a small research project to look at the
effect of the FOI Act on archives services. We seek volunteer archives
offices to participate in the project. If you are interested, please read
on.
We plan to do this through a comparison between pre- and post-FOI, looking
primarily at expectations and whether they have been realised, and the
effect of preparations, but also gathering some factual information about
numbers of enquirers now and post-January 2005, etc. We will send out a
questionnaire to participants in November, to gather baseline information.
We will then follow-up with a further questionnaire in the second half of
February 2005, to gather information about the immediate effect of FOI, then
a further questionnaire a year later, in February 2006, when things should
have settled down.
We are not thinking in terms of a statistically valid survey but a small
project gathering quality data. For that reason we are keeping the numbers
small. We would like 5-10 volunteers from each of the following sectors:
* bodies with a national remit (we will be one of them)
* local government archives services
* university archives services (especially those that collect the
archives of other bodies)
We would like to be able to name those institutions which have agreed to
participate, if possible, but will offer confidentiality for the information
you provide. We want to use the information but undertake not to attribute
it, or use it in a way that enables attribution by inference.
If you are interested in participating and would like to volunteer, please
email me or my colleagues Rick Mitcham and Jo Kirkham at one of the
following email addresses:
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]
If you would like more information about the project please email me at the
above address or telephone me on 020-7392 5330 ext 2305.
I look forward to hearing from at least fifteen of you!
Susan Healy
Head of Information Policy and Legislation Unit
The National Archives
Kew
Surrey TW9 4DU
Tel 020-8392 5330 ext 2305
Fax 020-8487 9203
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
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