Ayrshire Archives customer charter

Ayrshire Archives is the joint local authority archives service for East, North and South Ayrshire Councils and is concerned with the preservation and management of records from the thirteenth century to the present day.

Services provided

Ayrshire Archives offers a full range of modern reader services. Records can be accessed through our various finding aids in the public searchroom at the Ayrshire Archives Centre on the Craigie Estate in Ayr. A member of staff is always on duty to advise users on all aspects of our record holding. As spaces are limited, however, readers are asked to book a seat in advance, particularly those readers coming from a distance or who intend to work in the searchroom for several days or weeks.

Additional services offered by Ayrshire Archives include replies to written and telephone enquires, a research service, historical exhibitions, tours, record surveys and public talks. Depending on the condition of the document, photocopies or digital images of original records can be obtained at commercial rates.

Many of the collections preserved at the Ayrshire Archives Centre have been gifted or loaned by institutions or individuals and staff would welcome further deposits of historical significance. Once deposited, these records are cleaned, stored, listed and made available for study. Archives staff are also happy to provide advice on the conservation and preservation of documents on request.

Service standards

When you contact us either in writing or by email we will:

Endeavour to deal with general correspondence within 20 working days of receipt.
Try to give you a full reply with as much information as possible.

When you contact us by telephone:

We will give our name and section when answering the telephone.
We will try to deal with your telephone enquiry at the time or pass you to an officer who can.
If the person you need to speak to is not available, you can choose to speak to someone else who can help. If you leave a message we will get back to you within 3 working days.

You can expect us to:

Be courteous and professional at all times.
Give you as much information and immediate advice as possible.
Observe privacy and confidentiality in all matters.
Monitor and evaluate our performance.
Give you a quality service at all times.
Endeavour to provide clean, accessible public offices that ensure privacy, comply with occupational and safety standards and that facilitate access for people with disabilities and special needs.

Specific service standards

Ayrshire Archives is committed to providing and promoting access to Ayrshire's archival heritage, and we aim to provide an informative and efficient service in a courteous and helpful manner.

Ayrshire's documentary heritage is unique and irreplaceable and we have a shared responsibility to safeguard the documents and to ensure their security and preservation. As a result, Ayrshire Archives will:

Store the records in conditions which meet current professional standards.
Promote good practice in handling records and provide suitable preservation media to protect the records while in use.
Provide public access at the Ayrshire Archives Centre during normal opening hours and in accordance with search room regulations and procedures.
Strive to give you intellectual access to the records through lists and indexes produced to current professional standards for archival description.
Give access to records in compliance with legislation, our preservation policy and the professional code of responsibility, paying due regard to the physical conservation of the records.
Enforce our procedures which are designed to ensure the security and preservation of the records and explain them to you.
Provide guidance and advice for researchers and record owners in accordance with our professional Code of Conduct.
Aim to provide copies of records where possible, in accordance with our preservation policy.
Fulfil our obligations to our remote users by providing a prompt and efficient service.

When you ask for an appointment

If you wish to make an appointment to discuss any aspect of our service please contact us to arrange a mutually convenient appointment.

What you can do to help

Attend any appointment in time, or let us know if you cannot do so.
Behave in a considerate and polite way so we can give you and other customers the standard of service you would expect.
Please be patient as there will be times when we are exceptionally busy. We will however, make every effort to keep waiting times to a minimum.

What if I am not satisfied

If you are unhappy with any aspect of our service, please contact us and we will try to resolve any problems quickly, and explain what we have done and why. If we do not respond satisfactorily, you can take your complaint further by using our feedback procedure. You can get a leaflet titled 'Help Us To Get It Right' directly from ourselves or from any South Ayrshire Council office.

Alternatively you can phone 0300 123 0900 or email customerservices@south-ayrshire.gov.uk you can also use this procedure for comments, suggestions and complaints about other South Ayrshire Council services.

Any suggestions?

We hope you will find this information helpful and that we continue to meet the standards we have set. Please let us know what you think by using our feedback procedure or by contacting us directly at the address below.

How and when you can visit us

The Ayrshire Archives Centre is open to the public for research purposes on Tuesday to Thursday of each week from 10.00am to 1.00pm and 2.00pm to 4.30pm. The centre can be contacted Monday to Thursday from 8.45am to 4.45pm and on Friday from 8.45am to 3.55pm.

Contact details

Ayrshire Archives
Ayrshire Archives Centre
Craigie Estate
Ayr KA8 0SS
Tel. 01292 287584
email: archives@south-ayrshire.gov.uk
Website: Ayrshire Archives