TNA to cut resources!
The UK National Archives (TNA) have announced a number of changes that have the objective of reducing the running costs by 10% by 2010 in order to remain within budget. The UK Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is a part of the UK The National Archives.
The announcement states:
“The National Archives is proposing a number of changes to our operations and services. These proposals would reduce the running costs by 10% by 2010, as our budget remains flat for the next three years. These will help us to keep within budget.
The key points that will affect our visitors and customers are:
- Moving to opening five days a week – Tuesday to Saturday
- Reducing overall staff numbers by 35, mainly in administration and management roles, but increasing the number of senior records specialists
- Continuing to provide access to original documents on site at Kew
- Charging for car parking in line with the government's green agenda
The savings we make will ensure that The National Archives has sufficient funds to continue with its core activities and is able to invest in the future.”
The detail of the proposals state:
“What we are proposing
We are proposing savings of £4.2 million (of which £900k is public services contribution).
- There are many proposed savings across every area of The National Archives - we have proposed changes which maintain quality, and cut quantity instead
- Because we are stopping some services and activities, we will need fewer staff
- We expect (and need) to achieve most of the savings by the end of March 2010”
The proposals do not indicate whether the Office of Public Sector Information has been ring fenced or what changes the proposals may have on the public sector information policy and implementation agenda!
The UK Advisory Panel on Public Sector Information (APPSI) raised concerns about the merger of the Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) with The National Archives (TNA) in the 2006 APPSI annual report. The APPSI report at that time stated:
“APPSI’s views on the merger
On 21 August 2006, APPSI held an extraordinary meeting to consider the proposed merger. The Chief Executive of TNA and the Director of OPSI each gave presentations to the Panel, explaining the thinking behind the merger.
Consistent with APPSI’s past recommendations on the need for greater coherence, as just noted, there was broad support for the idea of merging OPSI with TNA and, in turn, bringing it into DCA’s extended family (although it is fair to say that most members would have been more comfortable with OPSI becoming a division of DCA).
Crucial to APPSI’s broad support for the merger was the prospect, through being part of TNA and, in turn, being related to DCA, of OPSI securing greater Ministerial interest in and support for the greater re-use of PSI. The reasons for this optimism are outlined in Section 2 of this report, in relation to APPSI’s attempts to engage Ministers.
However, at the meeting on 21 August 2006 and in the days that followed, members did express two serious concerns, which were said also to have been echoed in the publishing and digital content communities:
1. That the merger between TNA and OPSI was, in practice, a take-over of OPSI by TNA and, in consequence, the re-use of PSI would become a lesser priority for the Government and that the commercial value of PSI would be neglected.
2. That the very name, “The National Archives”, no matter how much work was being done to modernise that organisation, would continue to be associated with historical materials and, in consequence, the image of OPSI that had been emerging, as a forward-looking innovator, might be lost when absorbed into TNA.
APPSI raised these concerns in frank discussions with TNA and OPSI. In response, the Chief Executive of TNA and the Director of OPSI worked hard to reassure APPSI in respect of both of these issues.
That TNA was much larger than OPSI and was the dominant party in the merger could not be denied. But, as its Chief Executive explained, TNA is repositioning itself at present and is rapidly emerging as the focal point in the public sector for information policy and information management. APPSI accepts this and has been especially impressed with the rapidity with which the Chief Executive has led an initiative to set up a Knowledge Council within government, a development wholly consistent with various APPSI recommendations in the past. (APPSI sees strong synergies between the projected Knowledge Council and the existing CIO Council.)
The Chief Executive went on to argue that the re-use of PSI is a fundamental building block in bringing about more coherent information management and, far from neglecting the OPSI agenda, TNA, with its much greater resources and reach, will provide a far more effective platform from which OPSI can promote and regulate the exploitation of PSI.
On 9 October 2006, the Director of OPSI wrote to APPSI, expressing her views. In the letter, she said:
I feel strongly that in redefining a National Archive for the 21st century and allowing OPSI’s PSI and regulatory role to develop with rigour, we will meet the confidence and reassurance our stakeholders demand. Within TNA we have a unique opportunity to cover every strand of the information cycle and deliver the coordinated approach that APPSI has been promoting since its inception. In the initial sharing of priorities and opportunities working across The National Archives policy related teams, we have already identified some exciting initiatives where we can reinforce our work and also develop an efficient and effective information management approach to support the wider public sector.
This letter has provided APPSI with considerable comfort. The Director’s commitment to PSI re-use cannot be over-stated and her favourable assessment has reassured APPSI considerably.
As for the name, “The National Archives”, we accept that this is largely a branding issue. We maintain that it will not be easy to shift the general perception of TNA as a body whose focus is on historical material but we can see that the Chief Executive is working hard precisely to bring about a change of view. APPSI was pleased in this context when she arranged for the Chair to meet with Consolidate, the marketing consultants who are advising on the repositioning of TNA.
The public message is unquestionably being refocused. In the words of TNA’s current website at www.nationalarchives.co.uk :
The National Archives is at the heart of information policy – setting standards and supporting innovation in information and records management across the UK, and providing a practical framework of best practice for opening up and encouraging the re-use of public sector information.
In summary, APPSI’s conclusion, in relation to the merger of TNA and OPSI, is that we are optimistic about its prospects and supportive of the new, resultant organisation. We view it as an important function of APPSI to monitor the progress of the TNA and OPSI merger, to watch for any diminution of emphasis on PSI re-use, to note successes, and to report back next year on the progress that has been made."
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