My search results

I've found what I'm looking for. What do I do next?
That's great. Our catalogue is like that for any online shop, except that when you order something, you either have to come to us to see it, or ask us to make a copy for you. Use the BRO's website Contact form to get in touch, and tell us how you would prefer to see the item(s) you've found. Don't forget to include the document reference from the catalogue.

I haven't found what I'm looking for. Why not?
Sorry! It might be that we don't have what you are looking for: either it has not survived, or it is kept in someone else's archive. Or it might be that you are looking for something that we have, but we haven't described it as you expected. School log books will tell you a lot about teachers, for example, but a lot of our catalogues will just say 'log book'. Most catalogue descriptions will tell you what the archive is, rather than its page by page contents - that's where research comes in.

It might also be that we have something, but that the catalogue entry for it is not online: there's a lot of stuff that we haven't had time to add to the catalogue yet. Use the BRO's website Contact form to get in touch, and ask us to check whether we have something.

I wanted to see an image. How can I do this?
You'll probably need to ask us to take a photograph of it for you, which we'll charge for. We have a few images on the BRO's website, and we have also digitised our collection of enclosure maps of common fields - see New Landscapes for details.

The catalogue says that the thing I want to see is closed or not to be produced. What does this mean?
Apologies for lapsing into jargon. A 'closed' record is one that contains sensitive personal information that we can't yet make public. The date at which it is due to become 'open' will be given. In the meantime, you can still ask us whether we are able to release specific information to you from it. Something marked as 'not to be produced' is so fragile that we can't let anyone use it until it is repaired. Use the BRO's website Contact form and ask us whether it can be repaired, and if so, how long it might take to repair it. It might be possible to bump it up the queue. We might also have a copy of it that you can see.

Helping the BRO

I've got something that might interest you. How do I get in touch?
Quickly, particularly if it is at risk! Often things get thrown away when something closes or someone dies, and it is often too late to rescue them. Use the BRO's Contact form on the website. We'll be interested in things that are rare or unique. Brace yourself: newspapers for historic events and family bibles tend to be neither.

I think that I have spotted a mistake in the catalogue. Can I let you know?
Oh yes, please do. We don't pretend to have got it all right. Quite apart from typos and the like, we realise that research usually adds to what we know. Also, if the catalogue entry does not make sense then please do get in touch. Use the BRO's Contact form and please remember to give us the document reference.