Papers of the East Midlands Group of the Council for British Archaeology, 1954-1997

The collection comprises:

• Minutes 1985-1993, correspondence 1980-1995, case-files c.1980-c.1990, notices 1962-1987, and chairman's files 1993-1997 of Group 14 and East Midlands Group (BCA 1);
• Minutes 1954-1972, and other items relating to Group 6 Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland (BCA 2);
• Annual reports 1986-1997, copies of executive and committee minutes 1986-1992, articles of association 1983, 'Survey of Archaeological Science Training Needs 1994', and 'Report of the Structure and Policy Review Working Party 1991' from the Council for British Archaeology nationally (BCA 3).

The Council for British Archaeology was founded in 1944 in response to the imminent redevelopment of bomb damaged historic cities. One of its aims was the 'safeguarding of all kinds of archaeological material and the strengthening of existing measures for the care of ancient and historic buildings, monument, and antiquities.' It also endeavoured to raise public awareness of the need for archaeology and for its inclusion into education. The Council's 'Survey and Policy for Field Research' (1948) was as part of an integrated approach to the exploration of British heritage. Other pioneering actions and involvement included the setting up of the first Industrial Archaeology Committee (1959), British Archaeological Abstracts (1968), Young Archaeologists Club, and 'Internet Archaeology' (1995).

The Council is arranged into specialist committees and groups. The committees originally represented periods of history but since the 1970s, the committees became more thematic. In 1996, the nine committees were replaced by a single, strategic, UK-wide Research and Conservation Committee.

The Council is also divided into regional groups. With relevance to this collection, Group 6 represented Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland until the 1970s. The boundaries were then changed several times, most recently in the 1990s when Group 14 (representing Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Derbyshire) was renamed CBA East Midlands and recognised as a separate area.

The collection has been arranged into three parts representing papers of the Council nationally and its two groups. Within these parts, papers have been divided by document type into series. Within these series, items have been arranged chronologically.

ACCESS: Pending full cataloguing access is limited and is possible only for registered users by advance notice and agreement.

LANGUAGE: English

This description is the only finding aid available for the collection. Copyright in the description belongs to The University of Nottingham.

• Collections relating to other groups of the Council are recorded on the National Register of Archives.

REPROGRAPHIC: Reprographic copies can be supplied for educational use and private study purposes only, depending on access status and the condition of the documents.

COPYRIGHT: Permission to make published use of any material from this collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Keeper of the Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections (email mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk). The Department will try to assist in identifying copyright owners but the responsibility for copyright clearance before publication ultimately rests with the reader.

The collection was acquired by The University of Nottingham's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections from members of the University's Department of Archaeology in 1999.