Welcome to Archives and Copyright: Developing an Agenda for Reform

This resource has been produced as an orientation point in critically assessing how copyright shapes the work of archives as it relates to preservation and access. It recognises that the copyright regime enables and facilitates the work of archivists, but that it can also inhibit and frustrate that work. As such, it considers what role a risk-based approach to copyright compliance might play in making it easier for archivists to preserve their collections appropriately, and in making those collections as accessible and as useful as possible.

The resource contains transcripts and short videos of the discussions at ‘Archives and Copyright’, an RCUK-funded Symposium hosted by the Wellcome Trust on 27 September 2013.

The symposium was generously funded by the Wellcome Trust; and the production of this resource by the Archives and Records Association UK & Ireland, and the British & Irish Law Education and Technology Association.

This is a beta version, and we will continue to add further materials to the site.

Comments are welcome to: contact@create.ac.uk

The Symposium ‘Archives and Copyright: Developing an Agenda for Reform’ was held at the Wellcome Trust on 27 September 2013. It was organised by Ronan Deazley and Victoria Stobo in collaboration with the Wellcome Library, and represents the culmination of an RCUK-funded research project concerned with the manner in which the copyright regime shapes the work of heritage institutions, and in particular archives.

The Symposium was organised around four related panels, followed by an open discussion with the audience.

In addition to transcripts and short videos of the discussions at the Symposium, this resource contains an introductory essay, a bibliography, a downloadable publication of the full Symposium proceedings, as well as additional related material.