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General => The Common Room => Topic started by: Eastbury on Tuesday 29 January 19 13:04 GMT (UK)
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Hello Rootschatters
Rootshchat has kindly given permission for me to send this post to you all.
Worcestershire Archives needs your help!
Worcestershire Archives provides educational, cultural, local and family history resources and it is under attack! Worcestershire County Council (WCC) intends to cut its budget by one third.
You can help fight the cut and save our heritage by signing the petition. Constructive comments please.
https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-the-worcestershire-archives
Please share the message with friends and family and on social media
Thank you
Jack
(What’s the most famous document held in the Archives? Probably Shakespeare’s marriage bond.)
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Just to let everyone know that the e-petition can be signed by people who do not live in the UK (I signed). :)
After signing the petition they do direct you to a pre-selected US$25 paypal "donation" which is a bit cheeky, but you can opt to donate a lesser or greater amount. (I'm not sure what this donation is for) I thought I selected a lesser amount but somehow it reverted to $25. It might be something I did wrong (likely), but something to be aware of if you wish to make a contribution. :)
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Hello Ruskie
Yes, we already have people who have signed from other countries.
I wasn't aware that the website owners was asking for a payment, it didn't when I signed. The money is not going to the Friends of Worcestershire Archives, who set up the petition.
Jack
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Hello Ruskie and thank you to everyone who has signed the Petition since I posted the original message. :)
I should have emphasised that the donation is to the website owners and is voluntary. The money is not going to Worcestershire Archives or The Friends of Worcestershire Archives.
Jack
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A big thank you to everyone who has signed the “Save Worcestershire Archives” on-line petition, but we need more names!!
https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-the-worcestershire-archives
The Worcestershire Archives “ Explore the Past” blog is always worth a read https://www.explorethepast.co.uk/blog/ .
Please do all you can to help Worcestershire's Award-winning Archive and its friendly knowledgeable staff. They need all the support that you can give.
Thank you
Jack
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Thanks for clearing up where the requested "donation" is going Jack. :)
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I've gladly signed, though I don't have much confidence in online petitions to public bodies. A threat of voting them out at the next elections might concentrate their minds. (Quite fancy a gathering with pitchforks and billhooks outside the Council Offices myself ;D )
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Hi susieroe
Thank you so much for signing. https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-the-worcestershire-archives
Please tell your friends and share on social media.
You’d need to take your pitchfork on a bus, parking is difficult at County Hall!
The Worcestershire Archives are at "The Hive" in Worcester, it's more central and there are plenty of carparks nearby.
Jack
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Hello Rootschatters,
It’s great that you are signing the Save Worcestershire Archives petition. Just two signatures more and we reach another landmark!
https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-the-worcestershire-archives
Please sign the petition. Constructive comments please.
Tell your family and friends and share on social media.
The Worcestershire Archives has an interesting blog. Have a look at https://www.explorethepast.co.uk/blog/
Thank you
Jack
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I am not sure how well visited the Worcestershire board is, but I believe some people visit some boards but not others ..... so I wonder if it is worth posting another thread on the Worcestershire board?
Duplicate threads are normally discouraged, but if you just mention that you have this thread in the Common Room and provide a link to it I think it might be acceptable, because it is such a worthy cause. :)
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Hello Ruskie
Thank you for contacting me.
I have it on the Worcestershire Board as "Saving Worcestershire Archives" and rosie99 kindly put in the link to the Common Room board.
Best Wishes
Jack
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I've gladly signed, though I don't have much confidence in online petitions to public bodies.
It's great that Rootschatters rally round in response to calls like this, but I can't help a nasty feeling that the budget-pruners may sit back thinking 'it'll be fine to trim that, all the old folks will come to the rescue'.
Pity, but that may be the way it is.
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I wonder how many signing up have done a basic bit of research on that site?
We have a FM reporting they were automatically forwarded to a paypal page asking for a $25 "donation". As that site is asking for 1,000 signatories even if only half cough up that is still $12,500. Nice work if you can get it.
That site is part of Angle Three Associates, LLC. An American company whose filing status is apparently concealed "The company's filing status is listed as Concealed and its File Number is 201317510260"
etc etc
Ever feel you have been duped ?
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I've gladly signed, though I don't have much confidence in online petitions to public bodies.
It's great that Rootschatters rally round in response to calls like this, but I can't help a nasty feeling that the budget-pruners may sit back thinking 'it'll be fine to trim that, all the old folks will come to the rescue'.
Pity, but that may be the way it is.
Unfortunately I also think the fact that many people signing the petition are not from Worcestershire or the surrounding regions may also reduce the impact with the council just thinking well they're less likely to use the facilities anyway. I know people do travel further afield for research, but perhaps less now than in the past. The Northamptonshire Archives campaign the other year I think was successful because they managed to galvanise the help of academics and students who would have been very much impacted with a reduction to two half days per week, that along with people from the wider region, and the publicity it generated. Sadly a petition on a website such as that isn't likely to have as much impact, although I accept its a start and something needed to be done.
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It's one of those commercial petition companies. Don't know how much notice is taken of them.
Otherwise, everyone is aware of cuts, both Central and Local Government. It's not finished yet either.
Brutal truth is the British people generally don't work hard enough to earn enough to pay enough tax to pay for all the goodies we take for granted.
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Hi
It’s been interesting and depressing to read the pros and cons for creating a Petition using a commercial website, and your opinions of the Petition’s likely success or failure.
Your comments have been noted and will be passed on.
Unless people use their Rootschat name it is difficult to tell how many are in the 900+ who have signed the Petition. Certainly the 400+ positive comments to the Petition seem to me to be mostly from people who have used the Worcestershire Archives.
Your votes are not wasted the Petition forms part of the overall campaign to save Worcester Archives and its data and comments are being presented to the Council. I believe that you can make a positive difference.
Jack
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Sadly if the council have got to cut budgets then they have to prioritise what they spend money on.
There is also the choice of not making your name public on the online petition so you would also those people :)
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Hi rosie99
Yes, you're right you can comment on the petition on-line as "anonymous", but all the petition signers have a name.
We do realise that County Councils generally are severely stretched. Much of the Worcs. County Council budget goes on statutory duties for Adult and Childrens Services (I've been paying attention to Council meetings since the Campaign began!)
Talking numbers - the Worcestershire Archives budget is just 0.12% of Worcestershire County Council's overall budget. So a proposed 36% cut to the Archives budget is a disaster for the Archives and its staff. The decision rests with the full County Council meeting on 14th February. I'll be there as a member of the general public and will let Rootschat forums know the outcome
Jack
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Your votes are not wasted the Petition forms part of the overall campaign to save Worcester Archives and its data and comments are being presented to the Council. I believe that you can make a positive difference.
Purely personally, I have not added to the petition because I have no family reason to search the Worcs archive, tho I can understand why users of this forum might think I should. I did back the People's Vote campaign because I saw a personal interest in staying in the EU - but that's another topic, which used to be hot but seems to get steadily cooler. Better not go there. ::)
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Purely personally, I have not added to the petition because I have no family reason to search the Worcs archive, tho I can understand why users of this forum might think I should. I did back the People's Vote campaign because I saw a personal interest in staying in the EU - but that's another topic, which used to be hot but seems to get steadily cooler. Better not go there. ::)
Is that not rather a selfish reason for not signing? I would have thought that as a family historian like the rest of us you would think saving any resources would be in everyones best interest even if you don't have need for that resource yourself.
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How very sad, Andrew, that you have declined to sign the petition just because "I have no family reason to search the Worcs archive".
I also have no reason to search Worcester Archives BUT I feel that it is important that these venues are still accessible AND I have signed the petition.
I fought long and hard to keep Lichfield Archives open - I live in Tamworth, but have no connections to Staffordshire at all other than current residence. However, I could conduct searches on behalf of others at no cost to myself, and I felt that this enhanced my own search skills. My other reason, was that Lichfield was home to the Diocesan records, not Stafford, where the records are now housed. Grrrrr :-X
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How very sad, Andrew, that you have declined to sign the petition just because "I have no family reason to search the Worcs archive".
I feel that a petition should reflect the demand for a resource, rather than just a sympathy vote. I don't suppose the archive is under threat of destruction, just the staff to service and access it. If that were the case I would probably support.
I choose to provide genealogy support in other ways, for example I have just completed my latest assignment for FreeReg, almost 10,000 Lancashire Quaker baptism records. I'm taking a break just now .... :-[
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I don't even live in the UK but I occasionally sign petitions if it is something I think is worth supporting. Hopefully others might benefit even if I don't (directly). :)
You never know where your research will lead you .... I currently don't know of any Worcestershire connections to my family, though I do have many in nearby counties. It is not beyond the realms of possibility that one of those branches may lead to Worcestershire. :)
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Just to say that I also do my "bit". FreeBMD and I've now uploaded over 330,000 entries BUT it doesn't stop my support for "on-site" resources.
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Just to say that I also do my "bit". FreeBMD and I've now uploaded over 330,000 entries BUT it doesn't stop my support for "on-site" resources.
I have to agree with you. :) I have also signed it but have no Worcestershire connections.
I consider that the time I spend on here helping others is my bit as I can't 'do' continual transferring of information on to spreadsheets.
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I feel that a petition should reflect the demand for a resource, rather than just a sympathy vote. I don't suppose the archive is under threat of destruction, just the staff to service and access it. If that were the case I would probably support.
If I may add to my earlier comment: I feel it's a bit hypocritical to lodge a protest about the withdrawal of something I have no expectation of using. That is rather like the 1960s in the UK, when many people protested about the loss of their local railway, though they never used it - they liked it to be there just in case, and it was part of the scenery.
Obviously it is much better if the Worcs archives stay as they are, but simply wanting them doesn't bring home the bacon, as it were. Maybe we should all find reasons to raise demand?
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I feel that a petition should reflect the demand for a resource, rather than just a sympathy vote. I don't suppose the archive is under threat of destruction, just the staff to service and access it. If that were the case I would probably support.
If I may add to my earlier comment: I feel it's a bit hypocritical to lodge a protest about the withdrawal of something I have no expectation of using. That is rather like the 1960s in the UK, when many people protested about the loss of their local railway, though they never used it - they liked it to be there just in case, and it was part of the scenery.
Obviously it is much better if the Worcs archives stay as they are, but simply wanting them doesn't bring home the bacon, as it were. Maybe we should all find reasons to raise demand?
Perhaps we should all have protested then, many of these branch lines that were destroyed are needed now. :)
It does no harm to sign things if it helps others to keep their services. Maybe people should be encouraged to use them more and perhaps a charge for doing so - that would probably promote another petition ::)
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Perhaps we should all have protested then, many of these branch lines that were destroyed are needed now. :)
It does no harm to sign things if it helps others to keep their services. Maybe people should be encouraged to use them more and perhaps a charge for doing so - that would probably promote another petition
Hmm, about the branch railways, I don't think so - many of the lost lines should never have been built, they always made a loss and would certainly do so now. Some others have been revived as 'heritage' lines but can only operate with volunteer staff (like me, occasionally). It costs a fortune to run a railway to modern standards, a fact which the travelling public doesn't fully appreciate.
But you are probably right about putting a service charge on the Archives under discussion, tho that might well reduce demand :(