Plans for new purpose-built home for Archives

Senior council officials have met with representatives of Friends of Carmarthenshire Archives to discuss the positive response to plans for a new purpose-built home for the Archives.
Carmarthenshire County Council Leader Cllr Emlyn Dole, Executive Board Member for Culture, Sport and Tourism Cllr Peter Hughes Griffiths and Head of Leisure Ian Jones met Friends of Carmarthenshire Archive President Eiluned Rees at Carmarthen Library on Monday morning to look at the plans for the new base to be built as an extension to the rear of the library building.
The plans for the £2m scheme are well advanced and received positive feedback during the consultation sessions at the end of last month. The council is turning its thoughts to shaping the new service and how it will engage with its public in the future.
It is hoped that bringing the archive service into the town centre will bring additional footfall to the King Street area of town, whilst adding to its ‘cultural quarter’ ethos.
The Collection has been cleaned and is now in temporary storage at Glamorgan Archive and The Richard Burton Archive, Swansea.
Providing a new purpose-built repository in Carmarthen will allow the return of the archives, and also improved access with shared resources at the library. Funding has been allocated from the council’s Capital Programme to finance a new building.
Council Leader Cllr Emlyn Dole said: “I look forward to seeing the project completed and the Archive being accessed and used. It is one of the best, if not the best, in Wales.”
Executive board member for culture, sport and tourism Cllr Peter Hughes-Griffiths said: “It is good to see the plans moving ahead quickly to develop this important resource for the people of Carmarthenshire. It will in the future provide an archival service among the best in Wales.”
Friends of Carmarthenshire Archive President Eiluned Rees said: “We are totally delighted. As one of the best collections in Wales the fact that it is having a repository of the highest order puts Carmarthenshire ahead in the world of culture.
“I also think it is an excellent idea to house the Archives in the same place as the reference library. You cannot separate the archive research from what you need from a reference library.”
Head of Leisure Ian Jones said: “The scheme we have in place will provide a brand new archive that meets all the technical requirements which have been discussed in detail with the National Archive Service and the Museums, Archives, and Libraries division of Welsh Government (MALD). The new Archive will be extended on to the rear of the existing Library in Carmarthen and is expected to open in 2019.
“We have also held a very successful consultation event in the last few weeks with key stakeholders, with a lot of positive feedback. The authority is committed to delivering this fantastic new scheme and plans future public consultation to develop further interest in this exceptional collection.”