‘It’s good for them to feel stretched’: collaborative volunteer projects at the Staffordshire Record Office

ABSTRACT Between May 2017 and September 2018, the Staffordshire Record Office and the University of Liverpool ran a collaborative volunteer research project titled Historic Flooding and Drought in Staffordshire, part of the AHRC funded project Learning from the Past — exploring historical archives to inform future activities. As researchers working closely within an archive service alongside staff and closely with volunteers, the Flooding and Drought project presented the opportunity to examine collaboration from multiple perspectives at once — the archive, the researcher or collaborating partner, and the volunteers. This paper argues that while not ideal for all archive volunteer activities (such as cataloguing), such projects can facilitate activities that an archive cannot achieve alone. Moreover, by providing stimulating and challenging activities, collaborations can capture volunteer interest, draw in new volunteers, develop volunteer skills and deepen volunteer loyalty and connection to the archive. Further, by working closely with the volunteers and valuing their experience and skills, the researcher can benefit from the support of those who have an intimate knowledge of the archive and the surrounding area. By fostering these collaborations and relationships, archives can provide valuable support for both their volunteers and researchers that might not otherwise be possible.