We invite you to have your say regarding location options for the Inner West Council History Collections and the forthcoming strategy to guide planning and delivery of history services over the next five years. This information will be used to ensure the History Service meets the needs of current and future users.

Read more about Council's History Service here


Developing the Strategy

As a result of amalgamation, Council is also considering whether to consolidate the Community History Collection and the historic Council Archives at one central location. There are currently six locations in which History and Heritage collections are held:

  1. Ashfield Local History Collection – Ashfield Library
  2. Ashfield Council Archives – Ashfield Service Centre
  3. Balmain Community Archive – Balmain Town Hall
  4. Leichhardt Local History Collections - Leichhardt Library
  5. Marrickville Local History Collection - Marrickville Library
  6. Marrickville Council Archives – Petersham Town Hall


What images and objects should Council collect now for future historian?

Let us know in the survey below

Protesters at Reclaim the Streets marchReclaim the Streets March, Newtown, December 2015


This survey closed on 29 August 2018

What happens next

Council will collate all the input gathered in the survey and publish an engagement outcomes report on this page. That information and other research will be used to develop a draft History Strategy which will be put on public exhibition for public comment later this year. The draft will be finalised, taking into account comments received during the public exhibition process and reported to Council for adoption. The project is continuing with the development of a Library Strategy.

Updates

Which of the following describe your relationship with the Inner West Council area? Check all that apply. Required
Language/s spoken at home other than English Required
Are you Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander? Required
Do you identify as having a disability? Required

The survey form is now closed. Thanks for your contributions.

16. Have you ever attended any of these events run by the service? Check all that apply Required
21. How do you keep updated with what is happening with the service? Check all that apply. Required
13. Thinking about the Inner West Council Archives - to what extent do you agree with the following statements? Required
Completely disagree
Somewhat disagree
Neither agree or disagree
Somewhat agree
Completely agree
The Council Archives are essential to my work
The Council Archives are a vital part of the community history and must stay in the inner west
The Council Archives are a nice to have, but not a necessary service of Council
The Council Archives could be stored off-site and retrieved on demand at a small cost.
The Council Archives should all be digitised so that that they can be accessed on-line
17. Currently, the majority of History and Heritage events take place during Heritage Festival (April) and History Week (September). To what extent do you agree with the following statements ? Required
Completely disagree
Somewhat disagree
Neither agree or disagree
Somewhat agree
Completely agree
History events should be held consistently throughout the year
Council should focus on the Heritage Festival and History Week as the main periods for delivering events
History and Heritage events should be hosted by a range of historians, authors etc
Council staff should deliver all the history and heritage festival events/talks
History events should be short, sharp and light hearted
History events should be in-depth and academic
History events should mainly focus on the pre-1950s inner west
Give me more history about the inner west in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
History events and exhibitions should be held near to the place they are about ie a St Peters history event must take place in St Peters
25. Thinking about the future of the Community History Collection and the Council Archives. How important are these features for you? Required
Not at all important
Slightly important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important
The location/s are fully accessible
I am able to access scanners, printer and photocopiers
I am able to access specialist History and Archive staff
I am able to access the service in the evenings and at weekends as well as during office hours
There is plenty of desk and work bench space to spread out materials
There are opportunities to network with other researchers/historians/archivists
I am able to access the majority of material online
Council keeps its collection in appropriate environmental conditions
Council builds on its existing collection of items
Items and materials are sent off-site and space is created for new items/collections
28. How important is it that Council collects these items into the future? Required
Not at all important
Slightly important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important
Photographs
Aerial photographs
Films
Oral histories
Commentary/opinion pieces
Newspaper articles
Newspapers
Council records
Maps
Subdivision plans
Brochures, posters, marketing material
Databases
Ephemera and memorabilia
Social media
Websites
Community donations
29. How important is it that Council collects on these themes into the future ? Required
Not at all important
Slightly important
Moderately important
Very important
Extremely important
Buildings, architecture, urban design and development
Sporting fields, parks and gardens
Politics and current affairs
Persons of note
Local business
Transport
Culture and arts
Sport and recreation
Fashion
Community concerns and hot topics
Food and drink
Entertainment
Community demographics
Environment and sustainability
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures
4. You answered yes - please indicate what you accessed and the main reason. Required
Personal/hobby reasons
Professional reasons
Education/study reasons
More than one reason
Another reason - please state below
As a volunteer
Family history
House history
Legal/insurance
Development/Building application
Material for an exhibition
Material for a publication
Staff expertise
Community owned archives
Council archives/records
Volunteer
Research
1. Are you aware that Council has a History and Archive service? Required
8. How important is it for you to access original materials? Required
9. How important is access to digital material? Required
10. How important are the databases offered in the library such as Ancestry.com and Find My Past for your research? Required
11. How important are online resources provided by Inner West Council such as the Localnotes weblog, Sands Directory, Inner West Council WW1 weblog ( formerly known as Leichhardt 5000)? Required
14. Some Councils such as City of Sydney and Woollahra store their archives offsite and charge a small fee for retrieval of relevant material. Would you be willing to pay for the service in this way? Required
18. Currently all programs and events are free of charge, how much would you be prepared to pay for specialist History and Heritage events or specialist speakers? Required
19. Are you willing to travel to another suburb in the Local Government Area to attend a History and Heritage event? Required
23. Ashfield, Marrickville and Leichhardt Councils amalgamated in May 2016. The Archives and Community History and Heritage Collections are housed in six locations across the Local Government Area (LGA). Which statement best reflects your view? Required
31. How important is signage about places of historic/heritage significance across the LGA (Aboriginal sites, parks, in new developments, places of significance etc)? Required
6. Where did you/do you usually access the service in person? Required
7. When searching information, do you usually Required
2. Have you ever accessed the service? Required
General questions
Questions about the the Community History Collections and the Inner West Council Archives.
Questions about programs and events
Questions about the future of the service
Questions about collection development
About you

The survey form is now closed. Thanks for your contributions.