THE OGILBY
MUSTER
TOM is an online platform which gives users access to First World War archives held in Regimental Museums across the UK. Following a 4-year project funded by a LIBOR grant from the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Army Museums Ogilby Trust (AMOT) launched The Ogilby Muster (TOM).
With over 75 participating collections, and more set to join, TOM will eventually hold over 2 million items including some never-before-seen material. Covering the period 1900 to 1929, the platform contains documents, photographs, letters, diaries and more, all related to the British Army and the men and women who served. Launched during Remembrance month 2021, TOM has preserved the experiences and memories of those who served in the First World War for future generations.
To access the site, click here
Networks for Change Funding
At the end of 2021, AMOT was successful in securing a grant from The National Archives Networks for Change funding scheme to help develop skills and knowledge surrounding archive best practice within the network and linked directly to The Ogilby Muster platform.
The grant awarded through the Networks for Change programme allowed AMOT to undertake a programme of development for the network specifically focused on archival care and management. Online training took place throughout 2022 and has covered areas such as handling and caring for archives; preventative conservation; effective cataloguing and the creation of digital metadata; training on copyright, including digital copyright; promotion of archives through online platforms such as social media to increase accessibility and engagement; and an ongoing training programme on the effective use of the First World War Archive platform itself for all participating collections which is provided by AMOT staff.
There is more to come… following the completion of the training sessions, we are now working to bring together a range of resources and case studies on best practice to be made available on the AMOT website accessible to those within the network and from the wider heritage sector. Also, in 2023, we will be investing our own funding into the network to help support the implementation of lessons learnt from the training. So, if you attended any of the training sessions in 2022 and are a member of the network, we will be getting in touch in early 2023 to let you know more about this support.
More about the Networks for Change Fund
The purpose of the Networks for Change funding scheme is to encourage collaboration among archive services by providing funding that leads to strong archive service networks. These networks in turn deliver beneficial solutions, models and approaches that contribute to an efficient, resilient and capable archive sector.
The Networks for Change fund provides grants of up to £15,000 to encourage the development of collaborative networks of archive services as part of a strategic approach to support the ongoing delivery of services, resilience and management of collections. For further information about the Networks for Change Fund, please click here.
Further support from The National Archives
As well as The Networks for Change Fund, The National Archives offers other grants to the sector. In partnership with The Pilgrim Trust and Wolfson Foundation, the Archives Revealed programme offers grants of up to £45,000 for cataloguing projects and £3,000 to produce scoping reports. The National Archives also provides grants for archives to test, explore or evolve ideas that have the potential to lead to positive change through the Archive Testbed fund, as well as support for urgent intervention to save records in peril through the Records at Risk fund.
For further information on grants offered by The National Archives as well as practical advice and guidance for fundraising in the archive sector, please click here.