Membership

Why join the BAC?

We are the leading body for business archives. We are also a charity run by a small group of professional archivists and historians who are passionate about the preservation and use of business archives, and actively pursue this aim.

Why do we care about business archives? Because they are a valuable source of information that can contribute to so many different research areas, to collective history and to the organisations that created them.

By joining us you will be supporting our work:

  • representing business archives at national and international events
  • working together with other archive bodies to raise the profile and advocate on behalf of business archives
  • providing advice on the management of business archives
  • supporting the development of business archive collections through two cataloguing grants
  • recognising and supporting historical research through a bursary and the Wadsworth prize
  • monitoring the state of business archives in different sectors, and identifying and rescuing business archives at risk through our crisis team
  • providing training for archivists and students

The annual conference, to which members receive a discount, provides a forum for sharing experiences and stimulating debate. A quarterly electronic newsletter provides updates on the work of the BAC and  its members, and news stories from the world of business archives and history.

Who can join us?

We welcome anyone who has an interest in business records. Our membership is wide ranging and global from archivists, historians, researchers and academics, to records managers, enthusiasts, libraries and businesses.

Subscription fees

The Council’s subscription rates are as follows:

  • Corporate Minimum £175.00 pa
  • Institutional Minimum £55.00 pa
  • Individual Minimum £35.00 pa
  • Student free membership

Volunteer with us

We are run by a small group of professional business archivists and historians, and are always happy to hear from individuals who would like to get involved and learn about business archives. By volunteering for the BAC you will have the opportunity to undertake meaningful and enjoyable work of value to the Council, its members and those benefitting from its work. If you would like to find out more please contact us. Whether you have a passion for the preservation and access of business records or are looking for credits for the Archives and Records Association Registration Scheme we'd like to hear from you.

Read our volunteer policy.

Discussion list

A discussion list for those concerned with Business Archives was set up in July 1998 and hosted by the University of Glasgow. The web archive of the discussion list by thread can be found at http://www.gla.ac.uk/External/BusArch.

To subscribe to the list an email message should be sent to majordomo@gla.ac.uk, with 'subject' blank and the command subscribe busarch in the body of the message.