St John's Library and Archives welcome Cambridge Archivists

On Friday, 1 March, the Library and Archives played host to over 40 Cambridge and Oxford Archivists. The theme for the afternoon was outreach and accessibility. Ryan Cronin, Rebecca Watts and Tracy Wilkinson discussed current projects within the Library and Archives which are aimed at engaging and enlightening non-traditional users.

A fundamental challenge facing Archives and Special Collections today is how to bring manuscripts to life in such a way as to capture the imagination and enthusiasm of a new, and wider audience.

Tracy Wilkinson demonstrated how to increase access to Archives and Special Collections by harnessing digital media.

Rebecca Watts shared her experiences of working on the Samuel Butler Collection at St John’s, and suggested ways of tapping into wide-ranging collections that can engage a general audience.

Ryan Cronin discussed the opportunities and limitations of running schools outreach events in a 17th-century Library, and how to use creative and interactive approaches to learning to make school visits to the Library engaging, informative and fun for groups of all ages.