Public Record Office Victoria annual report 2011-2012 by Public Record Office Victoria

A report from the Keeper of Public Records as required under section 21(1) of the Public Records Act 1973

VPRS 10742-P000-A31

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA Annual Report to the Minister 2011â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2012

CONTENTS

WELCOME TO PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA

Ted Baillieu MLA Premier and Minister for the Arts 3

Public Record Office Victoria

39 Appendices

Purpose and Objectives

Message from the Director

40 Appendix 1: Assets, financial statement and staff profile

Public Records Advisory Council

10 Overview 15 Report on performance 16

The Hon Ted Baillieu MLA Premier and Minister for the Arts Parliament House Melbourne VIC 3002

Highlights 2011–2012

27 Output measures 2011–2012 28 Strategic initiatives 2011–12 28 Remodel the transfer service 28 Refresh VERS 29 Enhance Public Record Office Victoria’s Standards 29 Expand Public Record Office Victoria’s Policy Framework

Dear Minister I am pleased to present a report on the carrying out of my functions under section 21(1) of the Public Records Act 1973 for the year ending 30 June 2012. Yours sincerely

Justine Heazlewood Director and Keeper of Public Records

Appendix 2: Publications

Appendix 3: Standards and Advice issued

43 Appendix 4: Approved Public Record Office Victoria Storage Suppliers (APROSS) 44 Appendix 5: Approved Places of Deposit for temporary records 45 Appendix 6: VERS-compliant products 46 Appendix 7: 2011 Sir Rupert Hamer Records Management Award Winners

Build Collection Support

Promote Collection Usage

Foster an IM Culture

48 Appendix 8: 2011 Victorian Community History Award Winners

Embed Sustainability

49 Glossary

Upgrade Public Record Office Victoria’s Infrastructure

Build Organisational Capacity

Purpose: To support the effective management and use of the public records of the State of Victoria, in order that the government is accountable to the community and its historical memory is preserved, secure and accessible.

“Customer Service was fantastic. The staff there just can’t do enough for you. They are always pleasant and very knowledgeable.”

VPRS 10742-P000-A119

Day 2, Melbourne, 1956

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR Justine Heazlewood

DAILY OPERATIONS

VALUES

Public Record Office Victoria was established under section 3 of the Public Records Act 1973 (the Act), ‘for the better preservation, management and utilisation of the public records of the state’. The Act provides the legal framework in which Public Record Office Victoria operates, and specifies the core functions of Public Record Office Victoria and the Keeper of Public Records with respect to government records. These functions, pursuant to sections 7, 11 and 12 of the Act include: • Establish standards for the efficient management of public records including creation, maintenance, security, selection of those worthy of preservation, transfer for archiving, and segregation or disposal of those not worthy of preservation. • Assist public officers to apply these standards to records under their control. • Take public records into custody, preserve archives and provide security. • Classify records and publish indexes and guides to facilitate access. • Provide facilities for viewing, and make records in custody accessible. • Duplicate or reproduce and authenticate public records.

The Public Administration Act 2004 requires that public sector employees demonstrate public service values as outlined in the Code of Conduct for Victorian Public Sector Employees. Public Record Office Victoria actively implements, promotes and supports these values. Public Record Office Victoria, as a public sector body, has developed a set of values which are based on, and are consistent with the Code of Conduct. • Responsiveness: Public Record Office Victoria provides accurate and impartial advice to Government and delivers quality services to the Victorian community. Public Record Office Victoria is open to new ideas and different approaches that will achieve the most effective results. • Integrity: Public Record Office Victoria is open and honest in dealing with colleagues, clients, stakeholders and the Victorian community. Public Record Office Victoria strives to provide equal access to all products and services, act responsibly and avoid any real or apparent conflicts of interest. • Impartiality: Public Record Office Victoria makes decisions and provides advice that is fair, objective and without self-interest. Public Record Office Victoria works to serve the public good. • Accountability: Public Record Office Victoria staff operate transparently and take responsibility for their own actions. Public Record Office Victoria maintains a sustainable workplace environment and seeks to achieve the best use of resources. • Respect: Public Record Office Victoria respects its colleagues, public officials and members of the Victorian community and treats them fairly and objectively. Public Record Office Victoria is inclusive and does not tolerate harassment, bullying or discrimination. • Leadership: Public Record Office Victoria promotes best practice in recordkeeping and innovation. Public Record Office Victoria leads by example by creating positive and productive working relationships. Public Record Office Victoria supports, motivates and strives to develop its staff to reach their full potential. • Human Rights: Public Record Office Victoria respects and supports the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities in all decisions and advice and abides by all appropriate legislation. • Collaboration: Public Record Office Victoria consults and engages with the Victorian community, clients and stakeholders. Public Record Office Victoria provides customer service that most effectively meets the needs of clients and stakeholders.

MISSION STATEMENT To support the efficient management and use of public records to ensure that the Government is accountable to the community and the historical memory of the Victorian Government is secure and accessible. Public Record Office Victoria has identified three outcomes that represent the ongoing goals for the organisation: • Preservation: the records of Government are preserved so that they are available and accessible for as long as they are required. • Management: the records of Government are managed to enable accountability, efficiency and innovation. • Utilisation: the records of Government are used by communities to connect to their history and culture.

The past year has been an exciting one for Public Record Office Victoria, with many notable highlights. We have chosen an Olympic theme for this year’s Annual Report to mark and celebrate the 2012 Olympic Games. The images throughout the Annual Report are taken from Public Record Office Victoria’s extensive collection of photographs and artefacts from the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games which were held in this city and at a number of venues across Victoria 56 years ago.

A major area of focus for 2011-2012 has been raising the profile of Public Record Office Victoria within the Victorian community and encouraging public access to our extensive collection. One of the year’s notable events was Shake Your Family Tree Day which was hosted by Public Record Office Victoria in collaboration with National Archives of Australia. This event was a major success, with over 300 people visiting the Victorian Archives Centre to discover how to research and preserve their family histories. Public Record Office Victoria has also continued to increase public awareness through a series of exhibitions held at the Victorian Archives Centre and at the Old Treasury Building. The Gold and Governors: 150 Years of the Old Treasury Building exhibition has proven especially popular with the public and has seen Public Record Office Victoria rewarded with an extended three year partnership with the Old Treasury Building. We have focused heavily on delivering our services online and ensuring the public have access to digitised records. Our volunteers have played a major part in the move towards offering digital records especially this year with the completion of the Outward Passenger Lists project. This project first commenced in 1989 and has seen over 3.85 million passengers’ names indexed. Public Record Office Victoria have also been active in the community over the past year holding workshops to teach members of the public how to digitise their own records, thereby preserving local stories for years to come. Over the year Public Record Office Victoria has continued be a leader in the recordkeeping industry. In September 2011 Public Record Office Victoria was formally recognised at the Arts Portfolio Leadership Awards winning the category of Leadership and Business Improvement for the Recordkeeping Standards Project. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Public Records Advisory Committee for all their guidance and support throughout the year. I would especially like to thank Peter Harmsworth who stepped down from the Council in March 2012 after serving five years as Public Records Advisory Council President. Peter’s expansive knowledge of the inner workings of the Victorian Government will be sorely missed. We at Public Record Office Victoria wish Peter every success in the future.

VISION STATEMENT Public Record Office Victoria’s Vision Statement is ‘Public Records Publicly Available’. ‘Public Records Publicly Available’ seeks to inspire public servants to keep good records so that Public Record Office Victoria can fulfil its mission: to support the efficient management and use of public records in order that the Government is accountable to the community and the historical memory of the Victorian Government is secure and accessible.

Justine Heazlewood Director and Keeper of Public Records “I was amazed at your resources and the level of your services in all areas.”

PUBLIC RECORDS ADVISORY COUNCIL Peter Harmsworth AO

ESTABLISHMENT AND FUNCTIONS The Public Records Advisory Council is established under section 4 (1) of the Public Records Act 1973. The functions of the Council, as specified in section 5 of the Act, require that it: (a) In consultation with the Keeper of Public Records, shall promote cooperation between Public Record Office Victoria and public offices; and (b) May report and make recommendations to the Minister on any matter relating to the administration of the Act.

COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP Pursuant to section 4 (1A) of the Public Records Act 1973, the Council shall consist of not more than ten members with knowledge and experience in such areas as public administration, local government, records management, business administration, historical research and genealogical research. Membership of the Council during 2011–2012 comprised: Mr Peter Harmsworth AO (President), Public administration (to 31 March 2012) Mr Jim Berg, Indigenous heritage Prof. Sue McKemmish, Information and records management Ms Susie Zada, Historical research Ms Penny Hutchinson (Departmental nominee), Department of Premier and Cabinet Secretary: Ms Rebecca Young

SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES The Council met on three occasions in 2011–2012 14 July 2011

Victorian Archives Centre

24 November 2011 Victorian Archives Centre 8 March 2012

Victorian Archives Centre

ADVICE TO MINISTER

DISPOSAL SUBCOMMITTEE

During the year the President and the Keeper of Public Records met with officials of the Minister’s Office to emphasise the importance of the intended review of the Public Records Act 1973 and to discuss future appointments to the Council.

The Disposal Subcommittee of the Council provides technical advice to Public Record Office Victoria and agencies on proposed retention and disposal authorities (RDAs). RDAs are used by agencies as a tool to ensure compliance with the standards set out by the Keeper of Public Records in relation to the preservation and disposal of public records. The Council sees its involvement with the RDA approval process as an integral component of its legislative charter.

Promoting cooperation between Public Record Office Victoria and public agencies COUNCIL MEETINGS Discussion continued at Council meetings on how best it can achieve its charter of promoting cooperation between Public Record Office Victoria and other public sector agencies. In this regard, the Council enthusiastically supported Public Record Office Victoria’s initiatives to work closely with agencies in promoting better practice records management approaches, in particular, via the Recordkeeping Standards Project, the Victorian Electronic Records Strategy Refresh Project and Community Digitising Seminars. Projects such as these are having a far reaching impact across the Victorian Public Sector and into the wider community.

During the year the Council assumed the responsibilities of the Subcommittee due to the turnover of Council members. Consequently the Council reviewed and provided comment on nine RDAs from a diverse range of departments and public offices, including such agencies as Corrections Victoria, the Adult Parole Board and Statewide Health Services. SIR RUPERT HAMER RECORDS MANAGEMENT AWARDS Since 1998 the Council, in collaboration with Public Record Office Victoria, has presented the annual Sir Rupert Hamer Records Management Awards to recognise excellence and innovation in records management across the Victorian Public Sector. This year, the awards were held on 17 May 2012 at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House and attracted over 160 guests from across Victorian Government, the records management sector and archival communities. In organising the awards, Public Record Office Victoria worked closely with the Records Management Association of Australia.

OUTGOING PRESIDENT’S REFLECTIONS In March 2012, I advised Ted Baillieu MLA, Premier and Minister for the Arts that I was standing down as President of Council after performing the role for five years. As I advised the Minister, over my time as President I have been most fortunate to benefit from the experience and insights of a number of very talented fellow Council members. The Council has tackled a number of substantive issues, the foremost of which has been the strong advocacy to successive Ministers on the need for a substantial review of the Public Records Act 1973. The legislation has been found to be deficient and no longer reflective of contemporary developments in records management within the Victorian Public Sector. The Council was pleased to be advised that the Department of Premier and Cabinet was overseeing the revision to Public Record Office Victoria’s enabling legislation. The Council has benefited from the very able support of Public Record Office Victoria. Ms Justine Heazlewood and her team have worked closely with the Council to ensure it effectively achieved its charter. Council has been especially impressed with the way Public Record Office Victoria has responded to a major review of records management in the Victorian Public Sector undertaken by the Victorian Auditor-General in March 2008. Public Record Office Victoria worked diligently to recast its strategic directions and to prioritise its activities to more effectively achieve its legislative goals in view of the report’s findings. It is a credit to Justine and her team for the achievements gained within the available resource base of Public Record Office Victoria. I wish the Council and Public Record Office Victoria every success for the future.

Also during the year, Council members were involved on judging panels for the Local History Grants Program 2011–2012 and the Sir Rupert Hamer Records Management Awards.

Due to the turnover of Council membership there were no opportunities to undertake regional visits this year. Public Record Office Victoria provides generous support to the Council by preparing Council agenda papers, coordinating the scheduling of Council meetings, providing assistance to the President with the appointment of new Council members, as well as providing assistance and administrative support for Council Subcommittees. The Council would like to record its appreciation of the support provided to it throughout the year by the Keeper of Public Records, Ms Justine Heazlewood and her staff and to especially thank Ms Rebecca Young for her support in the role of Council Secretary.

Peter Harmsworth AO President, Public Records Advisory Council (1 July 2011 – 31 March 2012)

OVERVIEW ADMINISTRATION

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA STANDARDS AND AUTHORITIES

EXECUTIVE

Public Record Office Victoria issues standards for records management and authorities for retention and disposal under section 12 of the Public Records Act 1973. A full list of current standards and authorities is provided on Public Record Office Victoria’s website at www.prov.vic.gov.au/government and at both the North Melbourne and Ballarat offices.

ACT ADMINISTERED – PUBLIC RECORDS ACT 1973 Public Record Office Victoria’s operations are governed by the Public Records Act 1973, which defines the role of both the Keeper of Public Records and the organisation. The Act is available for inspection on the Public Record Office Victoria website, www.prov.vic.gov.au and at our North Melbourne and Ballarat offices. REGULATIONS MADE AND ADMINISTERED Regulations are made under section 23 of the Public Records Act 1973 and are known as the Public Records Regulations 2003. The Regulations prescribe fees for making and supplying copies of public records and set out conditions for the inspection of public records and use of facilities provided by Public Record Office Victoria. All Regulations are available for inspection on Public Record Office Victoria’s website at www.prov.vic.gov.au/about-us and at both locations . PORTFOLIO RESPONSIBILITY The Department of Premier and Cabinet, through Arts Victoria, has portfolio responsibility for Public Record Office Victoria. Public Record Office Victoria is an administrative office under the Public Administration Act 2004. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION Requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 are handled through the Department of Premier and Cabinet Freedom of Information officer. For information about categories of documents maintained by Public Record Office Victoria, refer to the Department of Premier and Cabinet website at www.dpc.vic.gov.au. PROTECTED DISCLOSURE The Whistleblower’s Protection Act 2001 promotes accountability and transparency in the public sector, which will in turn increase public confidence in the workings of government. The procedures implemented by Public Record Office Victoria in relation to protected disclosure can be found in the Department of Premier and Cabinet’s 2011–2012 annual report. In accordance with section 104 of the Act, Public Record Office Victoria reports that no disclosures were made to it during the reporting year.

DEPARTMENT OF PREMIER AND CABINET ANNUAL REPORT Further information about Public Record Office Victoria’s performance during 2011–2012, including financial and staffing data, is included in the annual report of the Department of Premier and Cabinet, available at www.dpc.vic.gov.au

CONTACTS As at 30 June 2012 PROV operated two public reading rooms and had 74 staff members working in four operational areas. PUBLIC READING ROOMS Email: ask.prov@prov.vic.gov.au Victorian Archives Centre Harry Nunn Reading Room 99 Shiel Street North Melbourne VIC 3051 Phone: (03) 9348 5600 Ballarat Archives Centre State Government Offices Corner Mair and Doveton Streets Ballarat VIC 3350 Phone: (03) 5333 6611 GOVERNMENT SERVICES Assistant Director: David Brown Phone: (03) 9348 5621 Email: david.brown@prov.vic.gov.au Agency enquiries: prov.agency.queries@prov.vic.gov.au ACCESS SERVICES Assistant Director: Graeme Hairsine Phone: (03) 9348 5727 Email: graeme.hairsine@prov.vic.gov.au Public enquiries: ask.prov@prov.vic.gov.au CORPORATE SERVICES Assistant Director: Lucy Hastewell Phone: (03) 9348 5653 Email: lucy.hastewell@prov.vic.gov.au

Day 13, Melbourne, 1956

VPRS 10742-P000-C2164

Headed by Justine Heazlewood, Director and Keeper of Public Records, the executive team is located at 99 Shiel Street, North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; phone (03) 9348 5600.

OVERVIEW Day 10, Melbourne, 1956 VPRS 10742-P000-B1736

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

GOVERNMENT SERVICES Government Services supports best-practice records management across the Victorian public sector. This is done through: • Utilising and valuing the knowledge and commitment of Public Record Office Victoria. ISSUED RECORDS • Developing and supporting the implementation of bestpractice records management processes and policies 70,000 across the whole of Victorian Government. • Building partnerships60,000 with stakeholders to improve information and records management. 50,000 • Identifying and preserving records of permanent value. • Making records more 40,000 visible and accessible through new technology and better-aligned 30,000 documentation, transfer and disposal practices. 20,000 • Managing the Victorian Electronic Records Strategy. Number of records

Premier of Victoria Minister for the Arts Secretary Department of Premier & Cabinet

Director Arts Victoria

Director PROV

Public Records Advisory Council

Government Services

Access Services

Corporate Services

Standards and Policy

Online Access

Finance and Risk Management

Government Record Keeping

Collection Services

Facilities

Governm

Public u

10,000

ACCESS SERVICES

The goal of Access Services is to ensure that our unique 2006/07 2007/08 collection is widely known and accessible to the people and Government of Victoria. This is achieved through: • A program of exhibitions, publications, educational resources and outreach activities. • The provision of public reading room services and online access to Public Record Office Victoria’s collection and research tools. • Preserving archives within their region of origin, ensuring equality of access for communities in regional Victoria. • Providing culturallyVISITORS appropriateTO services, procedures and READING ROOMS tools that enhance access by the Koorie community. • Transmitting to clients25,000 information about the collection. • Issuing records in a manner that meets government needs and community expectations. 20,000

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

Year

Geelong

Number of visitors

Parliamentary Secretary

Bendigo Ballarat

CORPORATE SERVICES15,000 VERS

Community Archives

Communication and Marketing

Technology Services

Information Management

People and Culture

Victorian

Corporate Services supports staff across Public Record Office Victoria through the provision 10,000of the following services: • • • • • • • • • •

Budgeting and financial management and reporting. 5,000 Risk management. Facilities management. Environmental planning and reporting. 2006/07 2007/08 Strategic planning and reporting. Communications and marketing. Information communication technology. Information management. Human resource management. Organisational development.

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

Year

“Being from out of town I ordered material on line which was there waiting my arrival. Wonderful !!!”

OVERVIEW Public Record Office Victoria’s three-year Corporate Plan provides the strategic direction for the period 2011–12 to 2012–13. It articulates the mission, operating environment and values of Public Record Office Victoria, as well as listing the organisation’s objectives and the initiatives it will pursue to achieve these objectives. It also details the guiding principles that Public Record Office Victoria use when implementing our initiatives. OUTCOMES • P reservation: The records of government are preserved so that they are available and accessible for as long as they are required. • Management: The records of government are managed to enable accountability, efficiency and innovation. • Utilisation: The records of government are used by communities to connect to their history and culture. INITIATIVES • R emodel the Transfer Service: Re-engineering the transfer service and associated business processes to provide improved client services and developing internal skills and capacity • Refresh Victorian Electronic Records Strategy (VERS): Leading the new VERS to reflect a range of enhancements across Government Services programs and provide increased public service efficiency and accountability. • Enhance Public Record Office Victoria’s Standards: Developing a revised Standards program and implementation schedule that will build internal capacity and responsiveness and confirm Public Record Office Victoria’s strategic leadership in recordkeeping within the Public Service and across the broader community.

“Well laid out space. Easily identifiable to make research quicker and more efficient.”

• E xpand Public Record Office Victoria’s Policy Framework: Developing Public Record Office Victoria’s policy strategy to provide a structure that supports and progresses key activities. • Build Collection Support: Building awareness of cultural collections in the community and developing the capacity for communities to care for them in the most appropriate way. • Promote Collection Usage: Increasing access to and usage of Public Record Office Victoria’s unique collection. Nurturing a greater knowledge of the collection both internally and externally and promoting Public Record Office Victoria as an organisation actively pursuing innovative solutions to collection utilisation. • Foster an IM Culture: Building a culture where information is valued as an asset and its use maximised to deliver financial efficiencies and position Public Record Office Victoria as an information management leader within the Victorian public sector and beyond. • Embed Sustainability: Placing the Victorian Archives Centre at the forefront of the Government’s commitment to environmental sustainability, to showcase how the public service is leading by example and to reduce our carbon footprint. • Upgrade Public Record Office Victoria’s Infrastructure: Establishing an integrated approach to the planning, management and renewal of Public Record Office Victoria’s physical and technical infrastructure, deliver improved organisational efficiencies and best-practice storage facilities for the State’s archival collection. • Build Organisational Capacity: Establishing Public Record Office Victoria as an employer of choice to attract and retain people who are passionate about and committed to the effective utilisation, management and preservation of Victoria’s archives. Develop the right people and provide the right tools to deliver Public Record Office Victoria’s strategic objectives. GUIDING PRINCIPLES • A ligning our internal skills, capabilities and capacity to our outcomes and objectives. • Seeking and taking advantage of partnerships, funding opportunities and collaborative approaches to meeting our outcomes and objectives. • Ensuring that our work improves Public Sector efficiency and accountability. • Providing sector leadership and a best practice approach. • Consulting with stakeholders and clients and using their feedback to inform and improve our programs and services, Detailed information about our activities can be found under these headings in the next section of this report.

Day 10, Melbourne, 1956

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CORPORATE PLAN 2010–2013:

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA Report on Performance

HIGHLIGHTS 2011–2012

Day 3, Melbourne, 1956 VPRS 10742-P000-B1776

PATIENT INFORMATION RETENTION AND DISPOSAL AUTHORITY

(l-r) Melody McDonald and Mark Beasley from Geelong Heritage Centre accept their Hamer Award from Justine Heazlewood, Director and Keeper of Public Records

2011 SIR RUPERT HAMER RECORDS MANAGEMENT AWARDS

Image of Victorian bush land after the 2009 fires & image of regenerated Victorian bush land

DIGITAL TRANSFER PROGRAM 2011–2012 has proven to be a busy period for Public Record Office Victoria’s Digital Records Transfer program. The transfer of digital records created in 2009 by the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission has been a major focus over the past year. To date, over 85,000 of the Commission’s digital records have been processed and stored in Public Record Office Victoria’s Digital Archive since July 2011. Public Record Office Victoria has also worked closely with the Department of Sustainability and Environment to prepare and transfer a collection of bushfire recovery photographs. These photographs provide a striking visual record of the native Australian bush and it’s resilience in the wake of bushfires. Public Record Office Victoria’s Digital Records Transfer program faces considerable challenges due the increasing range of digital record formats, record structures and the size of digital objects. To best meet these challenges, during 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria reviewed its approach to digital preservation and stress tested the Digital Archive’s capacity. This improvement work, plus the increased technical capacity of the Digital Archive itself, has supported greater efficiency in digital records transfer, doubled Public Record Office Victoria’s annual transfer capacity and improved our ability to manage a wider range of digital record formats and larger digital objects.

The Sir Rupert Hamer Awards are presented annually by Public Record Office Victoria in collaboration with Public Records Advisory Council. The Awards recognise extraordinary and innovative talent that exists within records management across the public and community sectors. The Awards for 2011 were held on 17 May 2012 at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House with over 160 guests in attendance from across Victorian Government, the records management sector and archival communities. The awards ceremony was co-hosted by Acting Privacy Commissioner Dr Anthony Bendall and the Keeper of Public Records Justine Heazlewood. The keynote speaker for the awards was David Brennan, Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne Law School who gave an interesting and informative talk on copyright.

In September 2011 Public Record Office Victoria issued a new Retention and Disposal Authority (RDA) for Patient Information Records, PROS 11/06. This Authority was produced as a result of a collaborative project between Public Record Office Victoria and the Departments of Health and Human Services. The RDA authorises the disposal of patient information records created by Victoria’s public hospitals and health services. It supersedes and substantially revises a previous RDA first issued in 1999. The retention periods and disposal actions aim to support the treatment and care of patients, to account for the requirements of the Health Records Act and Information Privacy Principles, and to protect the ongoing rights and entitlements of patients and health service providers. The RDA also sets disposal triggers that can be implemented in patient records systems supporting efficient recordkeeping and disposal practices. Throughout the project, Public Record Office Victoria and the Departments of Health and Human Services sought and received comment from a number of stakeholder groups including Victoria’s health information managers, the Australian Medical Association, the Medical Schools of Monash and Melbourne Universities, the Health Services Commissioner, the Chief Psychiatrist, and the Australian Patients Association. Public Record Office Victoria is grateful for their considered advice and feedback, as it was central to the success of the project.

(l–r)Heidi Victoria MLA, Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Premier with the Arts presents Allison Hunter with Public Record Office Victoria’s Arts Portfolio Leadership Award for the Recordkeeping Standards Project

RECORDKEEPING STANDARDS PROJECT In September 2011 Public Record Office Victoria completed the Recordkeeping Standards project. This project renewed the core standards that govern the way the Victorian Government creates, manages and disposes of records. The two-year project resulted in the development of a suite of seven mandatory Standards and supporting documentation. The success of this project was formally recognised and the excellent work of staff commended at the Arts Portfolio Leadership Awards where Public Record Office Victoria won the category of Leadership and Business Improvement. The Recordkeeping Standards will be maintained and revised in line with Public Record Office Victoria’s Continuous Improvement Framework.

The event showcased a number of projects highlighting the importance of good recordkeeping as well as the passion behind preserving records of the state’s history for the benefit of future generations. More information about the Sir Rupert Hamer Awards and recordkeeping practices is available at prov.vic.gov.au/ government/sir-rupert-hamer-awards. For a list of award winners see Appendix 7.

“Facilities were excellent. Good to see that state archives can be accessed without cost.!”

HIGHLIGHTS 2011–2012 VPRS 10742-P000-A110

THE VICTORIAN ARCHIVES CENTRE GETS A NATIVE GARDEN

REVIEW OF THE VOLUNTEERS PROGRAM

STEPS is a voluntary committee made up of Public Record Office Victoria staff and Victorian Archives Centre (VAC) tenants which provides advice on how to reduce the VAC’s environmental impact. In 2011 the STEPS Committee proposed that the VAC garden area should be redeveloped into a native water-saving garden for staff and visitors to enjoy. Public Record Office Victoria’s Executive team welcomed this proposal as the garden at the time was overgrown and difficult to maintain.

Last year Public Record Office Victoria conducted a major strategic review of the volunteers program. This review resulted in a number of recommendations across four key areas: Integration and communication, program support, program development and program operations.

In May 2012 the garden was re-planted by volunteer staff on one of Melbourne’s wettest days. Despite the weather, the planting day was a great success and the VAC now has an attractive native garden that is easy to maintain and will attract native wildlife such as birds and butterflies. STEPS worked closely with the Victorian Indigenous Nurseries Co-operative (VINC) on the design and planting of the new garden. This partnership was particularly rewarding as VINC are a not-for-profit co-operative dedicated to re-establishing native plants throughout Melbourne.

An article written by Public Record Office Victoria’s Lee Hooper for the True Crime Scene section of the Herald Sun.

The garden has been named after Justine Heazlewood, Director of Public Record Office Victoria, in honour of her ten years of environmental leadership.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA IN THE MEDIA During 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria has enjoyed a surge in media coverage with the collection, exhibitions and events attracting considerable attention in the print news, on radio, online and through social media.

The VAC’s new signage at the front entrance

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA’S NEW LOOK In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria conducted a major refresh of the signage both inside and outside the Victorian Archives Centre (VAC) building in North Melbourne and Ballarat Archives Centre (BAC). The refresh project aimed to make the buildings and services highly visible externally and easy to navigate internally. To achieve this, a ‘wayfinding’ project was undertaken which included surveys and broader consultation to find out how our visitors travelled to Public Record Office Victoria and how they find their way around the Centres. As a result, a bold new design and colour scheme was selected and new signs were erected or updated at entrances of the VAC and the BAC. The ‘wayfinding’ signage inside the building was also refreshed and improved in line with the design concepts and public feedback. The new look signs use a simple but effective arrow design to point out the different areas of the building to visitors and building tenants.

Highlights include the extensive coverage of Public Record Office Victoria’s collection of criminal and court records through the True Crime Scene section of the Herald Sun. Over the course of three months, investigative reporters have referred to the records to revisit and illustrate some of Victoria’s most fascinating cold case stories.

Feedback on the new look has been overwhelmingly positive, with many people commenting that the Centres were easier to find and simple to navigate once inside.

Public Record Office Victoria also presented a successful communications strategy for the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary celebrations of the Old Treasury Building. Resulting media coverage featured in a number of publications including The Age and the Herald Sun, radio interviews and social media outlets. This coverage has raised interest and visitation numbers to the Old Treasury Building’s Gold and Governors: 150 years of the Old Treasury Building exhibition and events program. The media has also shown great interest in Public Record Office Victoria’s overall collection with staff taking part in radio and press interviews to discuss a range of topics from family history research, criminals, community grants and history awards, encouraging people to visit us online or at one of our locations.

PROV staff triumph at a very wet planting day

The VAC’s new look signage clearly points visitors in the correct direction

In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria worked to implement these recommendations. In practical terms, this resulted in: • The establishment of a Volunteer Consultative Group (VCG), which met three times during the year. • The development and approval of a Volunteering Policy (in consultation with the VCG) • The start of a monthly volunteer newsletter. • A significant increase in the diversity of projects being undertaken (including online projects), and better alignment of projects with Public Record Office Victoria’s goal of increasing the accessibility of its collection. • An increase in the overall number of hours contributed to Public Record Office Victoria by volunteers.

HIGHLIGHTS 2011–2012 VPRS 10742-P000-B1338

SHAKE YOUR FAMILY TREE DAY

Public Record Office Victoria volunteer Genevieve Day hard at work

In March 2012 Public Record Office Victoria, in collaboration with National Archives of Australia, hosted the annual Shake Your Family Tree Day at the Victorian Archives Centre (VAC). The theme for this year’s event was ‘Byte into your family history’ as participants were given the opportunity to discover how to research and preserve their family histories in the digital age.

Public Record Office Victoria volunteer Irene Kearsey leads a tour group around the Archives during Shake Your Family Tree Day

VOLUNTEERS PROGRAM EXPANDS Public Record Office Victoria’s dedicated volunteers undertake a range of activities that improve access to records in the collection, support staff and allow Public Record Office Victoria to offer additional resources and services to researchers. This year 117 volunteers contributed a total of 18,335 hours of their time to Public Record Office Victoria projects. This is the most hours ever delivered by Public Record Office Victoria’s volunteers in a single financial year. In 2011–2012, volunteers contributed to projects such as: • Department of Crown Lands and Survey - processing land selection files. • Office of the Public Prosecutor processing criminal trial briefs and indexing the register of male prisoners. • Koorie Index of Names - continuing work on the Koorie Index of Names. • Historic Plan Collection - digitising plans of pastoral runs.

“Little bit hard to navigate but after a lesson from a staff member it was a lot less daunting and lots of information I had no idea about came to light”

Projects completed included: • State Coal Mine collection - the processing and listing of over 6,000 Public Building. Plans and 2,000 maps and plans. • Outward passenger lists project. The completion of the Outward Passenger Lists project is a major highlight for the Volunteer Program. This project first commenced in 1989 and has seen over 3.85 million passengers’ names indexed. Volunteers also manage Public Record Office Victoria’s in-house technical library and provide public tours of the Victorian Archives Centre repository. As ever, Public Record Office Victoria is indebted to its volunteers for all their efforts during the year.

Barb Addie Graham Bence Fay Beslee John Bolt Ian Braybrook Elizabeth Brown Stevie Brownsea Liz Buckle Sonya Cameron Graeme Cardillo Dianne Carmody Julie Chippindall Keng Chong Ahnya Chuah Jill Cilia Kim Clayton-Greene Beth Codling Val Connors Chery Cox Geoff Currey Gordon Dadswell Graeme Dawson Sue Dawson Genevieve Day Brian Dixon Cathy Dodson John Drury Constance Eastwood Gavin Faichney Rosalind Faichney Anne Field Leanne Goss Bernadette Griffiths Claudia Guli Andrea Gurciullo Sara Hardy

Ian Hazewinkel Richard Hudson Di Hughes Judy Johnston Irene Kearsey Betty Keay John Killian Shirley Krumnow Val Latimer Gordon Lee Sue Maclellan Jill Mack John MacKinnon Anna-Maree Malmgren Beryl Mainon Tim Marriott Millicent Marsh Leonie Marshall Sandra Marshall Judy Mason Hyam Mirsky Maureen Molloy Vicki Montgomery Neil Morris Chris Nichols Neil Paddle Geoffrey Paterson Pat Porigneaux Eileen Porter Yvonne Pratt Cathy Rankin Liz Raven Dianne Reilly Jon Rennison Sue Rickard

Dawn Riddel Maggie Robinson Neil Robinson Marie Rogers Helen Rowe Lynne Shann Rosemary Simpson Dot Skewes Jennifer Smith Gail Thornthwaite Judith Vardy Maxine Wagerman Dawn Walduck Ken Walduck John Waugh Pam Weller Margaret Wright Denise Young

Highlights of the day included a talk from guest speaker Kirrilly Brentnall, researcher for popular SBS television program Who Do You Think You Are? Also on offer throughout the day were a range of talks on topics including where to find family information; family history exploration in the digital age; and researching indigenous family members. Public Record Office Victoria staff and volunteers also led tours of the Archives throughout the event. Shake Your Family Tree Day was a major success with over 300 visitors to the VAC. Public Record Office Victoria has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from many visitors to the event.

Royal Visit. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip at the MCG, 1970. VPRS 1451 / P1

WE SAW THE QUEEN EXHIBITION In June 2012, to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee, Public Record Office Victoria opened a special exhibition titled We saw the Queen. The exhibition showcases a range of Victorian records featuring the Queen, including photographs, documents, interviews, objects and paraphernalia from Public Record Office Victoria’s collection. Public Record Office Victoria also received the support of Victoria’s Government House and staff to display some significant items from their collection in the exhibition. Exhibition highlights include a Royal Tea Service loaned from Government House and, from the Public Record Office Victoria collection, a letter of procedures written for government officials noting how to greet the Queen, what spirits, wine and tobacco should be arranged, when the Queen is to drink her coffee and that Prince Phillip is to always to remain with ‘the men’. The Queen has visited Victoria numerous times and the exhibition displays the changes in attitudes, excitement and types of celebration which accompanied each visit.

Kirrily Brentnall gives a talk on researching for Who Do You Think You Are at Shake Your Family Tree Day

We saw the Queen is on display at the Victorian Archives Centre until November 2012.

HIGHLIGHTS 2011–2012 VPRS 10742-P000-A766

THE LAUNCH OF PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA’S FIRST E-BOOK In 2012, Public Record Office Victoria’s most popular publication, Footprints: The Journey of Lucy and Percy Pepper was launched as an e-book. This new edition of Footprints, produced in conjunction with the National Archives of Australia is the first of this publication type for both organisations.

ACHIEVEMENTS OF STAFF

PROFESSIONAL COMMITTEES

AWARDS

Aside from their roles at Public Record Office Victoria, a number of staff made a significant contribution to their professions through membership of committees during 2011–12:

The work of Public Record Office Victoria staff and volunteers was recognised with several awards in 2011–2012: The Arts Portfolio Leadership Awards 2011 The Arts Portfolio Leadership Awards recognise excellence across the Victorian Government arts agencies and cover a wide range of categories from excellence in public programs through to business improvement, to leadership in disability access.

Footprints tells the story of the strength of an Aboriginal family in the face of adversity, tracing the history of the Pepper family through public archival records from the collections of Public Record Office Victoria, National Archives of Australia and the Pepper family’s own personal documents.

This year Public Record Office Victoria was the recipient of the following awards:

The new format makes the Pepper family’s story accessible to a new audience of readers. Footprints is available for sale via the Public Record Office Victoria online shop: www.prov.vic.gov.au/products-page/ e-books

Leadership in the Community: Highly commended Project: Footprints: The Journey of Lucy and Percy Pepper – exhibition

Leadership in Business Improvement: Winner Project: Recordkeeping Standards Project The Recordkeeping Standards Project was established to create new and accessible standards for recordkeeping within the Victorian Government in order to make the management of our State’s records more compliant, achievable and user-friendly.

Footprints: The Journey of Lucy and Percy Pepper is a touring exhibition that uses both Government and family records to trace the lives of one Aboriginal family in the first half of the twentieth century.

A bookmark advertising the release of Footprints: The Journey of Lucy and Percy Pepper as an ebook

Footprints: The Journey of Lucy and Percy Pepper. An Aboriginal family’s struggle for survival

Lauren Bourke: member, City of Ballarat Heritage Advisory Committee; member, Ballarat Collections Network; member, Victorian Community Heritage Collections Network; member, Bendigo Regional Archives Centre Operations Committee Antony Collins: member, Facility Management Association of Australia Charlie Farrugia: member, Victorian Association of Family History Organisations; member, Geographic Place Names Advisory Panel; member, ANZAC Commemorative Naming Pilot Project; member, Arts Agency Collections Working Group Sebastian Gurciullo: editor, Archives and Manuscripts; chair, the Editorial Board refereed journal of the Australian Society of Archivists; webmaster, committee of the Section on Literary and Artistic Archives of the International Council on Archives Graeme Hairsine: member, Bendigo Regional Archives Centre Committee of Management; member, Public Access Working Group of the Council of Australasian Archives and Recordkeeping Authorities; member, Information Management Committee, Department of Premier and Cabinet; Member, Arts Victoria Cultural and Linguistic Diversity committee Lucy Hastewell: member, Department of Premier and Cabinet Procurement Review Reference Group; member, Institute of Public Administration Australia Internal Communications Community of Practice Justine Heazlewood: member, Council of Australasian Archives and Records Authorities; chair, Australasian Digital Recordkeeping Initiative; member, Collections Committee, State Library of Victoria; member, International Council of Archives Congress Committee 2012; member, Standards Australia, Records and Document Management Systems Committee (IT-21); member, Monash University, Centre for Organisational and Social Informatics Advisory Board Allison Hunter: secretary for the Victorian Branch of Records and Information Management Professionals Australasia; member, Australian Society of Archivists Asa Letourneau: member, UNESCO Australian Memory of the World Committee as a State Liaison Officer for Victoria; member, Cloud Information Community

Heidi Victoria MLA Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Premier with the Arts presents Public Record Office Victoria’s Sebastian Gurciullo with a High Commendation for the Footprints exhibition

Tracey Manallack: member, Victorian Community Heritage Collections Network; member, Geelong Heritage Centre Committee of Management; member, Bendigo Regional Archives Centre Operations Committee

Julie McCormack: member, Council of Australasian Archives and Records Authorities; National Bodies Working Group; member, Australasian Digital Recordkeeping Initiative Disposal Project Working Group Alison McNulty: chair, Council of Australasian Archives and Records Authorities National Bodies Working Group; member, Local Government Storage and Digitisation Project Executive Committee; member, Who Am I? Advisory Group Cathy Meynell-James: member, The Records and Information Management Professionals Australasia Andrew Waugh: member, Standards Australia, Records and Document Management Systems Committee (IT-21) Subcommittee on Recordkeeping Metadata Daniel Wilksch: President of the Branch Committee of Museums Australia (Victoria); Public Record Office Victoria representative, History Council of Victoria; member, Intangible and Movable Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee of the Heritage Council of Victoria Rebecca Young: coordinator, Australasian Digital Recordkeeping Initiative CONFERENCE AND SEMINAR PRESENTATIONS In addition to Public Record Office Victoria’s formal seminar programs, noted in the operations section of this report, staff expertise and knowledge are shared through presentations at various conferences and seminars. In 2011–2012 these included: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Library and Information Resource Network Conference 2011, Big: big ideas, big collections, big picture, State Library of Victoria Melbourne, July 2011 Ed Story: Introduction to National Archives & Public Record Office Victoria, Koorie Reference Officer Sebastian Gurciullo: Taking archives into the Victorian Aboriginal community Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation, University of Melbourne Melbourne, July 2011 Abigail Belfrage: Public Record Office Victoria Crowdsourcing Transcription Pilot Asa Letourneau: Linked Open Data and Cultural Collections.

HIGHLIGHTS 2011–2012 Digital Preservation 2020 Sydney, August 2011 Andrew Waugh: Preservation Metadata

Future Perfect 2012 Wellington, New Zealand, March 2012 Andrew Waugh: Agency Business Systems and Records

Family History Feast 2011, State Library of Victoria Melbourne, August 2011 Sebastian Gurciullo and Ed Story: Knowing who you are: Koorie records in Victoria

Genealogical Society of Victoria, Thursday Talks Melbourne, April 2012 Sebastian Gurciullo and Grace Baliviera: Knowing who you are: Koorie records in Victoria

Victorian Association of Family History Organisations Annual Meeting and Seminar August, 2011 Charlie Farrugia: Researching Victoria’s State Wards in the 19th Century

Geelong Heritage Centre, Geelong and Ballarat and District Aboriginal Cooperative, Cultural Education Centre Ballarat, May 2012 Sebastian Gurciullo and Grace Baliviera: Introduction to researching records about Aboriginal People in Victoria, Discovering Your Mob

Know Your History, Preserve Your Culture Workshop Bendigo, Bairnsdale and Morwell, September – December 2011 Grace Baliviera, Tsari Anderson, Sebastian Gurciullo, Andrew Henderson, Ed Story Introduction to researching records about Victorian Aboriginal people Law Institute of Victoria Melbourne, October 2011 Graeme Hairsine: Cloud Computing, Recordkeeping Systems and Privacy Recordkeeping Roundtable special event on Digital Recordkeeping and the Series System Sydney, October 2011 Andrew Waugh: The Series System and Digital Data eResearch Australia Annual Conference Melbourne, November 2011 Abigail Belfrage (Public Record Office Victoria) and Conal Tuohy: Marking up the Public Record: the Public Record Office Victoria Crowdsourcing Transcription Pilot Informa 7th Indigenous Recruitment & Training Summit Melbourne, December 2011 Sebastian Gurciullo: Getting into Government and the Heritage Sector The National Records and Information Officers Forum Melbourne, February 2012 Matthew Gardiner and Alison Hunter: Implementing new standards and reforms - what do the revised records management standards mean for the Victorian Government? Professional Historians Association of Victoria professional development program, North Carlton Library Melbourne, February 2012 Sebastian Gurciullo: Writing for Refereed Journals

PUBLISHED WORKS Australian Garden History, 23 (2) October, November and Dec 2011 Abigail Belfrage: Garden History and the Web Milk Magazine, issue 14 April, May, June, 2012 Sebastian Gurciullo: ‘Family Ties’ article Around the RIM (RIMPA Vic Branch Newsletter) September, 2011 Allison Hunter: Creating and Capturing Full and Accurate Records Australian Society of Archivists Journal: Archives and Manuscripts November 2011 Allison Hunter: News Notes section, Public Record Office Victoria contribution Around the RIM (RIMPA Vic Branch Newsletter) March 2012 Emily Swann: Records of Social Media

Day 7, Melbourne, 1956

VPRS 10742-P000-B1029

Records and Information Management Professionals Australasia, inForum Darwin, September 2011 Andrew Waugh: Functional Requirements for Business Systems (presented by Lisa Judge)

OUTPUT MEASURES 2011–12

OUTPUT: RECORDS Quantity

2010–11 2011–12 2011–12 Actual Target Actual

Retention and disposal authorities issued 1

Public Record Office Victoria records transferred 2

2,274

1000

2,154

113,840 100,000 197,793

Digital records preserved

VERS departmental consultationss 4

Additional VERS software products certified

100

Quality % Collection stored to industry standard % Client satisfaction

100

OUTPUT: ACCESS

VPRS 10742-P000-C2136

Day 13, Melbourne, 1956

Quantity Records issued

2010–11 2011–12 2011–12 Actual Target Actual 49,222

50,000

52,676

104,126

140,000

154,333

Online visitors

896,497

750,000

966,123

Volunteer hours

15,124

18,500

18,335

6,939

7000

19,733

Visitors 6

Participants in public education, training and outreach programss7

Quality % Visitors satisfied with visit

Timeliness % Records issued within specific timeframes

1. The actual outcome exceeds the target due to a large transfer from government agencies to Public Records Office Victoria at agency request, in addition to the finalisation of scheduled transfers. 2. The actual number continues to increase due to technical improvements and changes in system processes increasing capacity. A revised target has been approved for 2012-13. 3. The actual outcome is below the target as departmental consultations were a focus of VERS stage 1 which is now complete. This performance measure has been discontinued and will be replaced with a new performance measure to accurately reflect the focus of VERS Stage 2. 4. This figure is driven by vendor demand and at present we have no way to accurately predict the demand. To address this problem this performance measure has now been discontinued. A new performance measure to accurately measure vendor demand has been developed. 5. The actual result is greater than the target due to increased exhibition visitors to the PROV travelling exhibition ‘Footprints’ throughout the year. 6. The actual result is greater than the target due to continued increase in the availability of digitised records online. A revised increased target has been approved for 2012–13. 7. This large number incorporates unprecedented visitor numbers for an external event: the Ballarat Heritage Weekend

PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 VPRS 10742-P000-A766

REMODEL THE TRANSFER SERVICE

REFRESH VERS

The first year of a two-year program to remodel Public Record Office Victoria’s Transfer Service was completed in 2011–2012. This program was introduced following the review of Public Record Office Victoria’s transfer approach and processes.

In 2011–2012, Public Record Office Victoria’s Government Services team conducted a major review of the Victorian Electronic Records Strategy (VERS). The review resulted in a final report, which recommended major changes to the strategy and its context.

Public Record Office Victoria’s transfer service now delivers on tasks across 10 different activity streams to meet the 59 recommendations for change which were made during the review process and supported by Public Record Office Victoria’s Executive team. Major achievements over the year include: • R edeveloping internal processes and improving technology to enable digital transfer capacity to increase by over 100% annually. • R edeveloping the set of transfer forms in consultation with agencies to streamline processes and minimise requirements. • D eveloping sets of Fact Sheets and FAQs to assist agency staff. • D ocumenting internal VEO electronic record) generation and processing knowledge based on recent practical experience. • E stablishing a Sir Rupert Hamer Award category for the agency undertaking the most significant transfer for the year to encourage and reward transfer activity. • U ndertaking work to identify significant records still in agency custody and begin building a profile of permanent value record holdings across the State. In addition, a program to further develop Public Record Office Victoria’s staff capacity (particularly in respect to digital records) and ensure tacit knowledge is captured and shared is underway.

“I rang one day and by the next morning was looking at 82-year-old family papers. Their availability is wonderful and the service provided to me was first class”

The recommended changes were across five major categories: 1. The Victorian Electronic Record Strategy itself – reemphasising the Victorian Electronic Records Strategy, as separate from the Standards and as critical for the management of electronic records. 2. Program of Work – the VERS program of work focused on getting agencies to the point of record creation. The work plan recommended the development of tools which would be used by agencies to benchmark their current level of Information management maturity against an array of standards. This tool would also help agencies capture information which is stored in non traditional ways such as on websites. 3. Implementation Approach – reconfirming the validity of the three stage model with particular emphasis on the importance of Stage Two (business systems) and the need to develop solutions focussed on client needs. 4. Changes to Public Record Office Victoria – refocus on leadership in the record and information management sector, including membership on committees and strategic alignment within wider Government. 5. Creating a whole of Victorian Government approach to Governance – broadening the membership of existing governance boards, and seeking Executive sponsorship to key VERS work projects. Throughout 2011–2012 the Government Services team have worked to develop a program of work to tackle the changes to VERS. Several significant projects have commenced, all of which promise to greatly enhance the electronic recordkeeping of the Victorian Government.

ENHANCE PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA’S STANDARDS

EXPAND PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA’S POLICY FRAMEWORK

Recordkeeping standards are critical for ensuring that the public service is able to operate effectively and be accountable for decisions made and policies implemented. Standards and their supporting specifications and guidelines set the benchmark for the creation, management, and disposal of records in Victorian agencies.

Public Record Office Victoria anticipates that they way the Government works and interacts with Victorians will change over the next ten years to a web-based service delivery model, particularly based around the use of mobile technology. These changes will create significant policy issues concerning how agencies create, manage and dispose of records.

In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria completed a two year project to redevelop and update its set of standards governing the management of records across Government. This project was funded by the Victorian Government. During the year the standards on Access, Capture and Control and associated specifications were issued: In addition, a number of specifications, guidelines and training modules were completed for the standards that had previously been issued. All of the standards, specifications and guidelines are on Public Record Office Victoria’s website at www.prov.vic.gov.au/ government/standards-and-policy. The completion of the standards project means that the Victorian Public Service now has an up-to-date, relevant and comprehensive statement of how records must be managed. Public Record Office Victoria will now commence a rolling five year program of reviewing and updating the standards to ensure that they remain relevant to Victorian Government agencies.

As a response to these anticipated changes in service delivery, Public Record Office Victoria undertook a number of initiatives in 2011–2012: • A n issues paper was published on the recordkeeping implications of social media. This work confirmed that a public record was created when a public servant used social media as part of their official duties. It also clarified when the record should be captured, and what information should be captured about the record. During 2012–2013 this issues paper will serve as the basis for a formal policy on social media. • A n issues paper was published on the recordkeeping implications of cloud computing. Government agencies are increasingly using cloud computing services to deliver government services and to support their operation. The cloud computing issues paper was designed to facilitate the Victorian Government’s use of cloud computing while safeguarding Victoria’s records. It has two foci: a Victorian agency’s responsibilities when adopting a cloud based approach to service delivery, and the impact on Public Record Office Victoria’s standards of the use of cloud computing. During 2012–2013 this issues paper will serve as the basis for a formal policy on cloud computing. • R ecordkeeping requirements for business systems were drafted during 2011-12. Government agencies are increasingly using business systems to manage the delivery of services. Public Record Office Victoria has been concerned that these systems are frequently not designed to capture and manage an appropriate record of the business of the agency. This work provides agencies with a set of requirements they can build into business systems to ensure that such systems properly capture and manage records. A version of these requirements will be released as a new International Standard during 2012 by the International Congress on Archives.

“The amount of information held at PROV amazed me!”

PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 VPRS 10742-P000-B1146

BUILD COLLECTION SUPPORT

WILAM NALING SMALL GRANTS

In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria continued to build collection support through funded programs, grants training and recognising successful projects through the Victorian Community History Awards.

Through funding from Aboriginal Affairs Victoria, Public Record Office Victoria awarded $39,000 in grants to nine Victorian Aboriginal groups to preserve and share their stories and culture.

LOCAL HISTORY GRANTS

These grants were made available to enable preservation and access to information about Victorian Aboriginals, and to contribute to the on-going work of reuniting members of the Stolen Generations and their descendents with ancestors and family.

Through the Local History Grants Program, Public Record Office Victoria continued to provide financial assistance for projects that share the history and heritage of Victoria. The Program provides small grants to community-based organisations to support the cost of projects that preserve, record, present or publish local Victorian history. On 1 July 2011, the Local History Grants recipients were announced by the Hon. Ted Baillieu MLA, Premier and Minister for the Arts. In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria distributed $348,410 worth of funding to 58 community organisations from across the State. A diverse range of projects received funding including exhibitions, digitisation, conservation and multimedia projects, as well as oral, written and published histories. The Program also recognised the invaluable contribution made by volunteers and community groups in preserving the significant local collections which are broadly scattered around Victoria. Public Record Office Victoria will continue to distribute $350,000 annually over the next three years as part of the Victorian Government’s commitment to preserving Victorian history for present and future generations. For a full list of grant recipients please see http://prov.vic.gov.au/communityprograms/grants-awards/local-history-grants

Among the nine funded projects was the ‘Preservation of photographs of Koorie women attending the Sisters Day Out® Well-Being Workshops conducted by Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention & Legal Service Victoria’. The project catalogues images taken since the group’s inception, and provides a record of Victorian Koorie women in the 21st century. A presentation of certificates was made at the Victorian Archives Centre in September 2011 by Ian Hamm, Executive Director of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria.

Public Record Office Victoria’s Tsari Anderson, Coordinator Koorie Records Unit delivers a Know Your History, Preserve Your Culture workshop in Shepparton

Projects will continue into 2012–2013 and will be highlighted on Public Record Office Victoria’s website. For a full list of this year’s winners please visit:

KNOW YOUR HISTORY, PRESERVE YOUR CULTURE

JUST DIGITISE IT!

Throughout the year, Public Record Office Victoria’s Koorie Records Unit delivered a series of eight Know Your History, Preserve Your Culture workshops across Victoria as part of the Koorie Archival Support Program funded by Aboriginal Affairs Victoria.

In 2011 Public Record Office Victoria conducted a series of two-day Just Digitise It! workshops in Hamilton, Ballarat, Traralgon, Melbourne and Mildura with a total of 281 people attending.

www.prov.vic.gov.au/community-programs/grants-awards/ wilam-naling-small-grants-scheme/current-recipients-2011

The two-day program featured a number of leading experts on Indigenous records and cultural collections including Connecting Home, the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation, the Koorie Heritage Trust, Museums Australia (Vic), Melbourne Museum, State Library of Victoria, National Archives of Australia and Public Record Office Victoria. The program provided awareness about historical collections and resources available in Victoria for researching Indigenous family history, as well as informative and practical sessions on conservation, developing collection policies, cataloguing and innovative ways in which Aboriginal material can be shared within local communities. Workshops were attended by over 250 participants and were held in Melbourne, Shepparton, Warrnambool, Mildura, Rosebud, Bendigo, Bairnsdale and Morwell.

“I have been very impressed that the material requested arrives in a timely fashion. I like being able to place my requests online before I arrive so that enough material is waiting for me when I arrive. It allows me to make the most of my time.”

Daniel Wilksch, Coordinator, Digital Projects demonstrates how to digitise historical records.

Public Record Office Victoria would like to acknowledge the valuable contribution and generous support of the presenters to this successful and insightful program. (l–r) Edward Story and Narissa Broben from the Koorie Heritage Trust accept a wilam naling grant from Ian Hamm, Director of Aboriginal Affairs Victoria

The practical workshops covered the digitisation process from planning a digitising project through to publishing a community collection online. Various skills were gained by participants including creating digital content as well as basic editing and digital publishing. Participant feedback was positive and encouraging, and as a consequence, Public Record Office Victoria has since delivered further digitisation workshops at the Geelong Heritage Centre and a digital photo editing workshop in Ballarat. To help meet the ongoing demand for the program, Public Record Office Victoria has developed an online Training Manual and accompanying demonstration video which is available on our website at: www.prov.vic.gov.au/communityprograms/training/just-digitise-it The extremely successful Just digitise It! workshops and correlating training materials was made possible thanks to a Community Heritage Grant received in 2011 from the National Library of Australia.

PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 VPRS 10742-P000-C2623

From l-r Gunditjmara elder Denise Lovett and author Gib Wettenhall accept the top prize at the Victorian Community History Awards for The People of Budji Bim

VICTORIAN COMMUNITY HISTORY AWARDS The Victorian Community History Awards recognise people and projects that preserve and share Victoria’s history. The 2011 Victorian Community History Awards were presented by the State Member for Bentleigh, Ms Elizabeth Miller MLA, at a ceremony held on 20 October 2011 at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House. The $5,000 top prize went to The People of Budj Bim, for a book written by Gib Wettenhall, in collaboration with the Gunditjmara People of South Western Victoria. Winners in other categories included a book about influential women in Melbourne’s history, an illustrated walking tour of historic Maldon, an exhibition about Melbourne’s Yiddish community and a recreated map of routes used to cross the Bass Strait in the early 1800s. The Victorian Community History Awards are managed by Public Record Office Victoria in partnership with the Royal Historical Society of Victoria. The 2011 winners were chosen by an expert panel from a field of more than 130 entries.

PROMOTE COLLECTION USAGE

READING ROOMS AND RECORD RETRIEVALS

Throughout 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria continued to increase awareness of and promote public access to its collection.

Public Record Office Victoria operates two public reading rooms: one at the Victorian Archives Centre in North Melbourne and the other at the Ballarat Archives Centre in Ballarat.

A number of major projects using Public Record Office Victoria volunteers were conducted over the year. These projects resulted in improved data being generated and published for 254 series in the collection, including 50 detailed item descriptions. These improvements will make it much easier for researchers to find the records they need.

During 2011–2012, 16,108 people visited the two reading rooms and a total of 43,350 records where issued to visitors and another 9,326 were issued to Government agencies and for internal Public Record Office Victoria use.

In 2011–2012 Public Record Office Victoria continued to refine the strategic direction for its collection with the introduction of a new three-year Collection Management Strategy which sets the direction and goals for management of Public Record Office Victoria’s $258M collection. This Strategy will: • P rovide direction regarding key initiatives to be pursued by the Collection Management Team in managing the collection held at the Victorian Archives Centre, Ballarat Archives Centre and permanent public records stored at Places of Deposit.

Reading room staff are the public face of Public Record Office Victoria and have always played a big part in promoting the use of Public Record Office Victoria’s collection. In 2011–2012 reading room staff delivered a number of information sessions to the public on how to use the catalogue, how to access the collection as well as sessions focusing on specific parts of the collection. To further engage with members of the public and generate interest in Public Record Office Victoria’s collection, reading room staff continuously highlight interesting or unusual records through the Record of the Month showcase. The Record of the Month may be viewed in Public Record Office Victoria’s reading rooms and online: http://wiki.prov.vic.gov.au/index.php/ Category:Record_of_the_Month

• B ring about enhancements to the conception, implementation and management of projects aimed at making our unique collection more accessible. • E nsure that our archival control system is regarded as the definitive source of accurate and reliable information about the collection. • D evelop the skills and knowledge base of the Collection Services staff. • E nsure that Collection Management policies, procedures and processes are developed and maintained. This year a Collection Management blog was established on the Public Record Office Victoria website which introduces the general public to the work of the Collection Management staff and highlights some little known facts about items in the collection. The blog is available at www.prov.vic.gov.au/ collection-management/

Record of the Month, May 2012 Ministerial Library Textbook Collection: VPRS 13554/P18, Unit 11, The Teaching of Reading with the Happy Trio Reading Scheme, The Primers

“My own skill let me down so I started off a bit slow but I received plenty of advice so sped up as time went by.”

PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 VPRS 10742-P000-A394

Number of records Number of records

RECORDS ISSUED 70,000

Government users

60,000

Public users

RECORDS ISSUED 50,000 40,000 70,000

Government users

30,000 60,000

Public users

20,000 50,000 10,000 40,000 30,000

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

10,000 Year

Public Record Office Victoria has supported the transition to online service delivery by hosting five wiki workshops over the period with participation from history societies, individuals, as well as staff. Feedback from these workshops has been incorporated into an online services review project that will influence future service design and delivery programs.

VISITORS TO READING ROOMS Number of visitors Number of visitors

Public Record Office Victoria has supported the aims of the Government 2.0 Action Plan by piloting an online record transcription service through the Public Record Office Victoria Wiki. The project has embraced freely available open source technologies to grow collection usage and allow users to transcribe digitised records from Public Record Office Victoria’s collection. In doing so, Public Record Office Victoria has been able to double visitation figures to the wiki since the start of January 2012.

Year

20,000

Geelong Heritage Centre

25,000

Bendigo Regional Archives Centre

20,000

VISITORS TO READING ROOMS

Ballarat Archives Centre

15,000 25,000

Geelong VictorianHeritage ArchivesCentre Centre Bendigo Regional Archives Centre

10,000 20,000

Ballarat Archives Centre

5,000 15,000 10,000

PILOTING CROWDSOURCING AND ONLINE TRANSCRIPTION SERVICES

Victorian Archives Centre 2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

Year

5,000 Year

DIGITISATION In late 2011, volunteers from Family Search (formerly the Genealogical Society of Utah) completed digitisation of Wills, Probate and Inquest records in Public Record Office Victoria’s collection. Over the course of the seven-year project, more than 30 local and international volunteers were hosted by Public Record Office Victoria to copy 450,000 documents (comprising over seven million images) from the 1830s to 1925. By June 2012 Public Record Office Victoria staff had completed transfer of over 90% of the digitised Wills and Probates to permanent storage. These documents are visible from the Public Record Office Victoria website www.prov.vic.gov.au. Work on transferring and publishing the digitised Inquests will commence in 2012–2013.

(l–r) Councillor Ken Ong, Prof. David de Krester, former Governor of Victoria, Diane Gardiner Manager OTB, David Brown, Assistant Director Public Record Office Victoria, the Hon. Alex Chernov, Governor of Victoria, Dr. Andrew Dodd, Author J.J Clarke, Architect of the Australian Renaissance, Jeff Byrne, Chairman OTB, Ted Baillieu MLA, Premier and Minister for the Arts, the Hon. John Cain former Premier of Victoria and John Landy AC, CVO, MBE former Governor of Victoria

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA EXHIBITIONS AT THE OLD TREASURY BUILDING In 2011–2012, Public Record Office Victoria has achieved two significant milestones within its exhibition program at the Old Treasury Building. Firstly, Public Record Office Victoria delivered the exhibition Gold and Governors: 150 Years of the Old Treasury Building. The exhibition was designed to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Old Treasury Building and its architect John James Clark who was just 19-years-old when he designed the building. The exhibition was warmly received and was launched by the Governor and the Hon. Ted Baillieu MLA Premier and Minister for the Arts. The exhibition also marked the end of a three year agreement between Public Record Office Victoria and the Old Treasury Building. The agreement was for Public Records Office Victoria to provide temporary and permanent exhibition content at Old Treasury Building. The success of the arrangement saw Public Record Office Victoria rewarded with an extended three year agreement to continue to develop its city presence and a new exhibition program that will continue to showcase Victoria’s heritage and the records of Government.

“It is a spacious, light area, with plenty of desk room, and the atmosphere is such that customers can concentrate and work efficiently.”

PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 VPRS 10742-P000-A573

Public Record Office Victoria

BOOK

PROV_GUIDEBOOK.indd 1

EMBED SUSTAINABILITY

Public Record Office Victoria

A key objective highlighted in Public Record Office Victoria’s threeyear Corporate Plan is to embed environmental sustainability into the organisation and through the ongoing management of the Victorian Archives Centre (VAC) building. Public Record Office Victoria remains committed to continually reducing its carbon footprint by monitoring and improving the way the VAC operates. Public Record Office Victoria is also dedicated to ensuring that all staff, volunteers and contractors are aware of this commitment.

BOOK

14/03/12 10:05 PM

PROV_GUIDEBOOK_issue3_ART.indd 1

UPGRADE PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA’S INFRASTRUCTURE

31/07/12 3:52 PM

Public Record Office Victoria’s recently published Guidebooks

FOSTER AN IM CULTURE Public Record Office Victoria has continued to develop the information management framework created in 2010–2011. The goal of the Information Management Framework is to deliver a culture where information is valued as an asset and its use maximised. Specifically, our Records Management regime was extended to capture all aspects of Records Management across the organisation. This included a review of the Business Classification Scheme (BCS) which was successfully implemented in 2010–11 along with all relevant policies and procedures. A Vital Records project was completed this year. The project identified those records required to restore Public Record Office Victoria operations in the event of a disaster, to enable mitigation strategies to be undertaken to ensure the records’ ongoing accessibility. The Public Record Office Victoria Communications and Marketing Strategy, developed in 2010–2011 was revised in 2011–2012 to include internal communications planning to ensure staff understand organisational objectives and have the correct information to do their job. The focus of communications and marketing is on physical visitation to our public locations and online visitation. Following the introduction of the new strategy, visits to the Public Record Office Victoria’s website have increased substantially and Public Record Office Victoria’s venues and events continue to attract large crowds.

2011–2012 saw the continued upgrade of the Victorian Archives Centre (VAC) building in North Melbourne, in accordance with our Asset Strategy and plans. Upgrades included commissioning a new Building Management System, that manages the plant and equipment that is so critical to the maintenance of strict environmental conditions (temperature and humidly) in our repositories. The Building Management System also facilitates more regular and accurate reporting of these environmental conditions, for use by Public Record Office Victoria and other VAC tenants.

Public Record Office Victoria is now in the first year of a new two-year Environment Strategy which spans 2011–2012 and 2012–2013. The strategy builds on the success of Public Record Office Victoria’s previous environmental program by outlining all areas of environmental impact and focusing on those that need improvement. This approach will help Public Record Office Victoria exceed all the regulated requirements for energy and water usage. Public Record Office Victoria has recently installed a large secure bike shed to encourage staff to be kinder to the environment and themselves by leaving their cars at home

The objectives of the new Environment Strategy are: • Reduce the carbon footprint of the VAC. • Reduce the ecological footprint of Public Record Office Victoria’s office-based activities. • Support the sustainable management and use of government records.

Five-year strategic planning was undertaken for the upgrade, replacement and enhancement of the Public Record Office Victoria’s collection management systems. The implementation of this plan commenced with a major Information and Communication Technology upgrade to replace the digital repository storage system with state of the art storage facilities. The next stage of the implementation plan will take place in 2012–2013 with the upgrade of the infrastructure that supports the transfer of digital records to Public Record Office Victoria that form part of the permanent digital collection.

To complement the Environment Strategy and ensure targets were met throughout the year an annual Environment Action Plan was also implemented and has already resulted in great achievements in all three areas. Public Record Office Victoria has also streamlined its sustainability reporting by incorporating this into the organisation’s annual corporate and strategic planning and reporting framework. 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12

Energy (megajoules per m)

701 752 761

Water (kilolitres per FTE)

22.8

21.6

15.6

10.29

10.2

9.2

Paper (reams per FTE) Waste (tonnes per FTE)

A key achievement in the upgrade of VAC this year was improvements to disability access, including the replacement of the front entrance door with an automated disabled access door and automatic repository doors. This was complemented by work to address issues identified in the Victorian Managed Insurance Authority’s annual site risk assessment of the building, to minimise risk to visitors and staff.

0.97 0.96 0.82 10 3819

Greenhouse gas emissions (tonnes CO2)

3510 3834

8. Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions have increased slightly in 2011-2012 due to extreme humidity experienced over summer which necessitated the use of chillers to maintain stable environmental conditions (temperature and humidity) within the repository 9. The FTE figure for water, paper and waste usage is 84. This figure includes staff and volunteers 10. Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions have increased slightly in 2011–2012 due to extreme humidity experienced over summer which necessitated the use of chillers to maintain stable environmental conditions (temperature and humidity) within the repository

“The sheer volume of information makes Public Record office Victoria the best in Australia”

PUBLIC RECORD PROV STRATEGIC INITIATIVES 2011–12 OFFICE VICTORIA BUILD ORGANISATIONAL CAPACITY Throughout 2011–2012, Public Record Office Victoria has focused on building its organisational capacity by introducing initiatives to attract and retain people who are passionate about the effective use, management and preservation of Victoria’s archives. This has helped distinguish Public Record Office Victoria as a preferred public sector employer. In 2011–2012, for the first time, Public Record Office Victoria participated in the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC) Summer Internship Program. The internship program aims to provide undergraduate students with the opportunity to be employed in a variety of roles for 12 weeks across DPC and its portfolio agencies. Feedback received from this year’s participants has been very positive and it is anticipated that Public Record Office Victoria will use this program in future to assist in developing a pipeline for a Public Record Office Victoria Graduate Recruitment Program.

Appendices

Staff have been involved in a number of initiatives to continuously improve awareness of Public Record Office Victoria’s procurement and contract management policies and procedures. This has included involvement in the DPC Procurement Review, attendance at procurement information sessions and the reinforcement of rules for different procurement thresholds in all stages of the procurement approval process. Public Record Office Victoria’s risk management framework has been updated to ensure compliance with AS/NZS ISO 31000:2009 and relevant Victorian Government standards and policies. Risk management governance arrangements and related procedures have also been updated to ensure consistency across various risk management processes undertaken. The identification, analysis and management of organisational risks is now embedded in Public Record Office Victoria’s strategic planning and reporting processes.

There was a continued focus on the personal and professional growth of Public Record Office Victoria staff during 2011–2012. The People and Culture team have focused on monitoring and developing the skills of employees through performance management and responding to staff and stakeholder feedback. Extensive learning and development activities took place during the year and included: writing for government and internal training on web-based products. Public Record Office Victoria also continued training staff in the area of health and safety.

“Staff fully explained procedures, limitations and possibilities and then were most helpful to us ensuring that we were comfortable and had the documents we were looking for.”

VPRS 10742-P000-C2328

To promote health and safety across the organisation, Public Record Office Victoria has a number of programs in place to support the physical and emotional health of its employees. The organisation’s Health and Wellbeing Program for 2011–2012 was expanded to include a number of educational and health-related activities such as ergonomic assessments, health and fitness assessments and a Health and Wellbeing Expo. It is anticipated that further activities in support of Public Record Office Victoria’s commitment to health and safety will be held later in the year and will have an increased focus on mental health and wellbeing.

Day 14, Melbourne, 1956

APPENDICES APPENDIX 1: ASSETS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT AND STAFF PROFILE

Staff profile

APPENDIX 2: PUBLICATIONS

ASSETS

The following information relates to substantive roles at PROV only. The information does not include fixed-term roles that are fully funded from temporary external funding sources such as grants.

The assets include both community and operating assets in the following four categories:

Total Female Male

Number of employees

Community assets These assets are the state’s archival collection. The collection was re-valued in 2011–2012 and is now valued at $258.3 million. Building assets Records repositories for storage of the state archives and the State Government’s non-current records are located at North Melbourne and Ballarat. The Victorian Archives Centre in North Melbourne, including land, was re-valued in 2011–2012 and is now valued at $59.2 million. Plant and operating equipment Operating assets are used for the upkeep of the physical and digital repositories so public records can be stored safely and made available for public inspection. Financial Statement

At 30 June 2011

At 30 June 2012

Number of staff members, by position type Executive Professional Administration

Number of staff members, by employment type Permanent full-time

Permanent part-time

Fixed term

2010–2011 2011–2012

Operating

$3,406,000

$4,525,000

Director

Salary and on-costs

$6,042,000

$5,412,000

Managers

Sub-total

$9,448,000

$9,937,000

$1,753,000

$1,070,000

FTE

Total

Female

Male

Capital Assets Charge

$4,163,000

$4,361,000

Number of employees

Depreciation

$6,175,000 $5,083,000

Capital

Total Expenditure

$21,539,000

$20,451,000

At 30 June 2011

68.44

35.94

32.50

At 30 June 2012

66.10

41.0

25.10

Executive Professional Administration

PUBLICATION SALES Public Record Office Victoria PO Box 2100 North Melbourne VIC, 3051 PUBLICATIONS 2011–12 PROV produced the following publications during 2011–12 Books This popular joint publication with National Archives of Australia about an Aboriginal family living in Gippsland was re-issued as our first e-book. Newsletters and journals Government Services Record A monthly e-newsletter of information and resources for records management professionals. Koorie Records Unit Newsletter A quarterly e-newsletter from Public Record Office Victoria’s Koorie Records Unit. POD Newsletter A quarterly e-newsletter for the Places of Deposit (POD) network.

Number of staff members, by position type 11. Capital investment includes investment against the Public Record Office Victoria asset management plan.

Hardcopy publications are also available from: Public Record Office Victoria’s online shop which you can access online: www. prov.vic.gov.au/publications/products-page or contact:

Footprints: The Journey of Lucy & Percy Pepper

Number of male & female directors & managers

Public Record Office Victoria produces a range of publications including books, newsletters and journals and also webcasts. For a full list of current Public Record Office Victoria see: www.prov.vic.gov.au/publications

1.0

62.50

37.40

25.10

2.6

Number of staff members, by employment type Permanent full-time

48.0

26.0

22.0

Permanent part-time

9.7

8.2

1.5

Fixed term

8.4

6.8

1.6

Number of male and female directors and managers Director

1.0

Managers

2.9

0.9

2.0

Public Record Office Despatch Public Record Office Victoria’s monthly e-newsletter of events and activities. Provenance: The Journal of Public Record Office Victoria Public Record Office Victoria’s refereed scholarly journal, published annually in October.2011, issue 10, ISSN: 1832-2522

PROVolunteers Monthly news about the Volunteers Program at Public Record Office Victoria Reading Room News A bi-monthly update on Public Record Office Victoria’s Reading Room Shaping Up! A monthly e-newsletter providing updates on the Public Record Office Victoria’s Recordkeeping Standards Project. (This newsletter has been amalgamated into the Government Services Record since October 2011) WEBCASTS Audio and video recordings of Public Record Office Victoria seminars and other events of interest to the Victorian community, published on Public Record Office Victoria’s YouTube channel – Public Record Office Victoria channel – which can be accessed at http://www.youtube.com/user/provchannel. New webcasts uploaded to the Public Record Office Victoria channel include videos accompanying our We Saw the Queen and Footprints exhibitions, education resources relating to the Footprints exhibition and our One Place, Many Stories education website, as well as guides and tutorials for researching in our reading rooms (these are also available on the Public Record Office Victoria Wiki at http://wiki.prov.vic.gov.au/index.php/PROV_ Wiki_-_Home.

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APPENDICES APPENDIX 3: STANDARDS AND ADVICE ISSUED Section 12 of the Public Records Act 1973 requires the Keeper of Public Records to establish standards for the efficient management of public records and to assist public offices in the application of those standards to records under their control. The Act requires public offices to implement records management programs in accordance with the standards established by the Keeper. For a complete list of standards see www.prov.vic.gov.au/ government/standards-and-policy STANDARDS Public Record Office Victoria’s standards and specifications establish requirements for the creation, management and use of Victorian public records.

STANDARDS ISSUED IN 2011–2012 PROS

Title of standard

Issue date Expiry date

11/07

Capture Standard

05/09/2011

05/09/2016

11/07 S3

Capture Specification

05/09/2011

05/09/2016

11/09

Control Standard

21/11/2011

21/11/2016

11/09 S1

Control Specification

25/11/2011

25/11/2016

11/10

Access Standard

25/11/2011

25/11/2016

11/10 S1

Access to Records in Agency Custody Specification

11/10 S2

Access to Records in Public Record Office Victoria Custody Specification

25/11/2011 25/11/2016

ADVICE These assist Victorian government agencies with applying the standards and provide guidance on specific issues.

ADVICES ISSUED IN 2011–2012 Number

Title of advice

Issue date Expiry date

11/10 FS1

Closure of Records under Section 9

25/11/2011

25/11/2016

11/10 FS2

Closure of Records under Section 10

25/11/2011

25/11/2016

11/10 FS3

Closure of Records under Section 10AA

25/11/2011

25/11/2016

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL AUTHORITIES Retention and Disposal Authorities specify mandatory retention periods for Victorian public records.

AUTHORITIES ISSUED IN 2011–2012 PROS

Title of authority

11/04

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of Consumer Affairs Functions

11/05

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of the Bushfire Recovery and Reconstruction Functions 2011-2012-12 2021-12-12

11/06

Retention and Disposal Authority for Patient Information Records

11/08

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of the Liquor Licensing Function created on or prior to 31 December 2006

12/01

Retention & Disposal Authority for Records of the Office of the Special Investigations Monitor 2012-01-09

12/02

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of Corrections Victoria

2012-02-27

2022-02-27

12/03

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of the Adult Parole Board

2012-03-13

2022-03-13

12/04

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of the State Revenue Office 2012-05-16

2022-05-16

12/05

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of the Statewide Health 2012-06-29

2022-06-29

Issue date Expiry date

2011-09-28 2021-09-28

2011-09-09

2021-09-09

VARIATIONS TO EXISTING AUTHORITIES ISSUED IN 2011–2012

APPENDIX 4: APPROVED PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA STORAGE SUPPLIERS (APROSS)

PROS

Title of authority

Issue date Expiry date

96/10

General Retention and Disposal Authority for Prison Records created prior to 31 August 2006 – Variation 8

2011-06-15

2021-06-30

09/09

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records of Mental Health, Alcohol and Drugs Service Functions – Variation 1

2011-11-24

2020-06-17

01/01

Schools Records Authority – Variation 4

2011-11-04

2015-07-31

02/01

Retention and Disposal Authority for Records for Higher and Further Education Institutions – Variation 5 2012-03-23

APROSS sites are commercial facilities that have been inspected by Public Record Office Victoria and approved for the storage of temporary and unsentenced public records. For a complete list of APROSS sites see http://www.prov.vic.gov. au/government/archival-supplies-and-storage APROSS facilities approved in 2011–2012 Grace Records Management 38/9 Ashley Street West Footscray Vic, 3012 Grace Records Management 24 Industrial Place Breakwater Vic 3129 Phone: (03) 96876498 www.gracerecords.com.au Carval Ltd – CARM 2 4 Park Drive Bundoora Vic, 3083 Phone: (03) 9450 5528 www.caval.edu.au

2014-07-31

REAPPOINTMENTS 2011-10-18 2021-10-18

Carval Ltd – CARM 1 4 Park Drive Bundoora Vic, 3083 Phone: (03) 9450 5528 www.caval.edu.au Recall Information Management Pty Ltd

2022-01-09

451 Plummer Street Port Melbourne Vic, 3207 465 Plummer Street Port Melbourne Vic, 3207 477 Plummer Street Port Melbourne Vic, 3207 Corner Kiewa Valley Highway & Baranduda Drive Baranduda Vic, 3691 8–10 Healey Road Dandenong Vic, 3175 582–600 Somerville Road Sunshine Vic, 3020

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APPENDICES APPENDIX 5: APPROVED PLACES OF DEPOSIT FOR TEMPORARY RECORDS

PLACES OF DEPOSIT APPOINTED 2011–2012 Name of organisation Date appointed

Location

Places of Deposit are community facilities that meet the storage standards required by PROV to preserve records of significance to local communities.

Beechworth Heritage 25 August 2011 Archive Centre

Ford St. Beechworth

Bendigo Regional 28 October 2011 Archives Centre

84 Nolan St. Bendigo

For a complete list of Places of Deposit see www.prov.vic.gov.au/ community-programs/places-of-deposit.

Bacchus Marsh 17 November 2011 215 Main St. & District Historical Bacchus Marsh Society

After testing conducted by Public Record Office Victoria, the following systems have demonstrated a capability of meeting either all or part of the requirements for long-term electronic records management outlined in PROS 99/007: Standard for the Management of Electronic Records (also known as the VERS standard). Systems may be certified against some or all of the specifications listed in the standard. Please note the products listed below were certified as VERS-compliant in 2011–2012. For a complete list please refer to the VERS compliance page on the Public Record Office Victoria website: www.prov.vic.gov.au/government/vers Product Vendor

Standard version

Spec 1

Spec 2

Spec 3

Spec 4

Spec 5

Objective 8

Objective Corporation Limited

Sept 2011

Feb 2012

OpenText Records Management v 10

OpenText Corporation

Mar 2012

Sep 2011

Oct 2011

OpenText Application Governance and Archiving for Microsoft SharePoint v 10

OpenText Corporation

Mar 2012

Nov 2011

OpenText Everywhere

OpenText 2 June 2012 Corporation

June 2012

OpenText extended ECM for SAP solutions

OpenText 2 June 2012 Corporation

June 2012

Wangaratta Family 17 November 2011 1st Floor, 100History Society Inc 104 Murphy St. Wangaratta

Technology One ECM v 4.02

Technology One

July 2011

Nagambie & District 17 November 2011 344 High St. Historical Society Nagambie

TRIM v 7.02

Hewlett Packard

Aug 2011

August 2011

TRIM v 7.1

Hewlett Packard

Oct 2011

TRIM v 7.2

Hewlett Packard

Jan 2012

Jan2012

Jan 2012

Creswick Museum 17 November 2011 Cnr Cambridge Research Centre & Raglan St. Creswick Learmonth & District 17 November 2011 326 High St. Historical Society Learmonth Meredith History 17 November 2011 4450 Midland Hwy Interest Group Meredith Alexandra Historical 17 November 2011 34a Grant St. Society Alexandra Upper Yarra Museum 17 November 2011 Old Railway Station, Warburton Hwy Yarra Junction

Public Record Office Victoria’s Lauren Bourke (far right) Coordinator Community Archives presents Valerie Brennan (left) and Cheryl Price (centre) with Wangaratta Family History Society’s Place Of Deposit Certificate

APPENDIX 6: VERS-COMPLIANT PRODUCTS

Mallacoota RSL 17 November 2011 8 Betka Rd & Historical Society Mallacoota Bunker Museum Glen Eira Historical 17 November 2011 965 Glen Huntly Rd Society Inc Caulfield South Healesville & District 17 November 2011 Community Link Historical Society Building, 110 River St. Healesville Altona Laverton 17 November 2011 128 Queen St. Historical Society Altona Phillip Island & District 17 November 2011 The Heritage Centre, Genealogical Society 89 Thompson Ave Cowes

* Denotes conditions associated with certificate.

APPENDICES APPENDIX 7: 2011 SIR RUPERT HAMER RECORDS MANAGEMENT AWARD WINNERS Victorian Government Agency Awards SMALL AGENCY CATEGORY Winner: Supreme Court of Victoria Project: Preserving Court Records As a result of a major records management review, the Supreme Court commenced a comprehensive upgrade of its records management practices through the Preserving Court Records project. The project has been extremely successful and has seen a reduction in storage periods from 17 to three years, 100,000 records emptied from the St Kilda Road facility and nearly 900 boxes transferred to Public Record Office Victoria. Certificate of Commendation: Eastern Metropolitan Region of the combined Department of Human Services and Department of Health Project: Records Improvement Strategy The Records Improvement Strategy project was a pro-active campaign run jointly by the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health, to improve their recordkeeping practices. Notable improvements to come out of this project include the hiring of new staff; revised processes; the introduction of education and awareness programs; a new helpdesk; the introduction of a new recordkeeping business plan; the review of archival holdings; and the commencement of a disposal program. MEDIUM AGENCY CATEGORY Winner: City of Kingston Project: Policy Portal The City of Kingston’s introduced a Policy Portal to cut down on the time their employees were spending searching for current policies. The Policy Portal gave staff a searchable database of up-to-date and available policies that are linked to the City of Kingston’s Electronic Document and Records Management System. This has resulted in significant reductions in time spent searching, improved currency and greater availability of corporate documents. Certificate of Commendation: Latrobe City Council Project: Enterprise Content Management System (ECM) Latrobe City Council introduced the ECM project to improve their records management practices. The ECM project achievements include the introduction of new policies; upgrades to Latrobe City Council’s IT operating system; improved management of archival storage; and the transfer of historical records to Public Record Office Victoria.

LARGE AGENCY CATEGORY Winner: Department of Justice Project: Records Management Strategy The Department of Justice (DOJ) initiated a project to develop a new Records Management Strategy. The project aimed to create a strategic framework to improve DOJ’s recordkeeping practices, support the implementation of a Records Management Policy, address an outstanding internal audit recommendation, and ensure compliance with the Public records act 1973. The outcome of the project was the completion of a new three year Records Management Strategy that is concise, implementable, relevant and compliant with Public Record Office Victoria Standards. Certificate of Commendation: Monash University Project: Facilities and Services Division, Records Management TRIM Project The Facilities and Services Division, records Management TRIM Project, implemented by Monash University, has already achieved significant results. Since the introduction of this project in 2011, Monash University has seen a significant increase in records registered, the elimination of the transfer of hardcopy records and registration of emails directly into TRIM. REGIONAL/RURAL AGENCY CATEGORY Winner: Greater Shepparton City Council Project: Going Digital with Financial Information The Greater Shepparton City Council’s project, Going Digital with Financial Information aimed to reduce physical paper generation and storage, improve processes and ensure compliance with legislation. This project established a digital consent model for information approval and introduced an EDMS to replace hardcopy paper trails and processes. This project has resulted in significant storage space savings and improved customer service. Certificate of Commendation: Wannon Water Project: Development and implementation of a corporation wide records management training program The key objective of Wannon Waters’ Records Management Training Program, was to ensure their staff were adequately skilled to easily identify a corporate record, and ensure they are effectively entered into TRIM. The delivery of this program been through training and awareness programs which have reduced the number of calls to the records help desk and increased the number of records being registered in TRIM.

Certificate of Commendation: Mildura City Council Project: Records Awareness and TRIM training project

COMMUNITY ARCHIVES AWARDS

Mildura City Council introduced this project when their Records Team identified common requests that were being logged in the Records Management Helpdesk System. The Records Team developed training modules to address these issues and provide training to staff. A variety of delivery methods were employed to ensure effectiveness, including phone-based support, classroom training, team awareness training, one-on-one training and establishment of a TRIM user group.

CATEGORY ONE

MOST VALUABLE TRANSFER TO PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA Winner: Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) Project: Surveyors Field Books & Indexes DSE conducted a transfer of nineteenth and early twentieth century records that document the surveys of the Port Phillip District and the Colony of Victoria. The documents include records of the very early surveys including the Hoddle Grid and documents of any other work carried out. The records also feature a general description of the environment including the details of common conditions in the field, hours worked, supplies carried and sketches of the topography. These records are of great interest and value to researchers. Public Record Office Victoria thanks DSE for being extremely corporative and proactive throughout this transfer. Certificate of Commendation: Supreme Court of Victoria Project: Master in Lunacy Records This Supreme Court of Victoria’s transferred nineteenth and early twentieth century records that relate to the Lunacy Maintenance Account which dealt with the general care, protection and management of the estates of lunatics (nineteenth century terminology) or those judged to be incapable of managing their affairs. These are significant records which have been saved by the agency through effective preservation activity and transferred to Public Record Office Victoria.

Winner: Preservation of records of significance to the local community and the state: Shepparton Family History Group Project: Preserving Shire of Rodney rate books via digitisation The purpose of the project was to preserve the former Shire of Rodney rate books within Greater Shepparton, via digitisation. The hard copy rate books, covering a period of 1886 to 1953, were digitised to ensure the valuable records would be retained within the local community. 57 volumes were photographed, page by page, resulting in 11,000 high quality digital images which are now readily available. The project was undertaken by 11 volunteers over a 22 week period, working shifts of five to six hours per day. The original volumes will be transferred to Public Record Office Victoria’s custody in the near future for safe and appropriate storage. CATEGORY TWO Winner: Providing enhanced records access in the local community: Geelong Heritage Centre Project: Developing a web-based online image library This project was to develop a web based online image library using items from the Geelong Heritage Centre archive collection. The Centre has in excess of 40,000 photographs in its collection and it was agreed an image library would Provide greater accessibility and showcase the history of the Geelong and South Barwon Region. The collection of items available online include glass plate negatives, posters, real estate sale notices, plans, architectural drawings, paintings and slides. The creation of the image library has enabled the Victorian community increased access to this archive collection, and in the 2011 calendar year, visitation to the website was in excess of 85,000 views.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE VICTORIA

APPENDICES OVERALL WINNER The People of Budj Bim by Gunditjmara people with Gib Wettenhall This book brings to life the amazing unknown history of the people of Budj Bim (Mt Eccles) and their traditional eel aquaculture systems and associated stone house settlements. BEST PRINT PUBLICATION: COMMERCIAL The Victorian Bush: its ‘original and natural’ condition by Ron Hateley This book combines the wisdom and knowledge of a long term forester to a probing analysis of early European observations in words and images and their implications for current management practices. Its commonsense arguments challenge our assumptions about original and natural landscapes and question the extent of Indigenous management. BEST PRINT PUBLICATION: SELF OR COMMUNITY PUBLICATION The Catalysts: Change and Continuity 1910–010 by Anne Longmire

‘I Succeeded Once’: The Aboriginal Protectorate on the Mornington Peninsula, 1839–1840 by Marie Hansen Fels This book provides a thorough explication of the details in Assistant Protector William Thomas’ diary dealing with the Mornington Peninsula Aboriginal Protectorate in 1839-1840 and the years of early contact between the Boon Wurong people and European colonists. It is an important addition to our knowledge and understanding of life on the peninsula at the time of first contacts. BEST WALK/TOUR Henry Handel Richardson in Maldon by Peter Cuffley, Helen McBurney, Geoff Palmer & Janey Runci An illustrated booklet containing three walks around the Maldon community including a detailed map featuring 16 historic buildings, the cemetery and significant graves, and a guide to places fictionalised in Richardson’s The Getting of Wisdom. BEST EXHIBIT OR MULTIMEDIA Mameloshn: How Yiddish Made a Home in Melbourne, The Jewish Museum of Australia

The Catalysts’ Club was formed in 1910 in response to social changes, such as women’s tertiary education and suffrage, which resulted in the emergence of the ‘new woman’, ready to challenge traditional constraints. This book documents the story of the Club with insights into some of Melbourne’s most influential women.

Curated in consultation with the dynamic Yiddish committee the exhibition documents the journey of Eastern European Jews who came to Melbourne to recreate their lives both before and after the Second World War. The exhibition gives a comprehensive account of the broader history of the Yiddish language, while still being firmly anchored on the Yiddish speaking community in Victoria.

BEST COLLABORATIVE/COMMUNITY WORK

JUDGE’S SPECIAL PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE

Our Boys at the Front, The Mornington Peninsula at War 1914–18 from the pages of the Peninsula Post by Michael Collins and others, Mornington & District Historical Society, 2011

Early Navigators of Bass Strait, 1770–1803 Map by Gregory C. Eccleston and others

This book and accompanying DVD explores the accounts of nearly 700 Mornington Peninsula ‘boys’ who served overseas in The Great War. Drawn from letters, diaries and reminisces from the war zones.

Glossary

BEST COMMUNITY RESEARCH, REGISTER, RECORDS

This extraordinary Map shows all the routes of European navigators who were passing near or through Bass Strait between 1770 and 1803. Drawn primarily from primary sources including the original charts by the navigators themselves it also includes Aboriginal placenames along northern Tasmania and southern Victoria.

VPRS 10742-P000-A370

APPENDIX 8: 2011 VICTORIAN COMMUNITY HISTORY AWARD WINNERS

Day 3, Melbourne, 1956

51 51

GLOSSARY accession A group of records from the same transferring agency taken into Public Record Office Victoria at the same time. The records may be formally arranged and described into records series and consignments or they may be unarranged and undescribed. Accessioning refers to the process of formally accepting and recording the receipt of records into custody (Keeping Archives ). advice A document issued by Public Record Office Victoria providing advice to Victorian agencies on a recordkeeping issue. (Includes formal advice about standards as well as forms and other tools to help Victorian government agencies manage and use public records.) APROSS Approved Public Record Office Storage Supplier – the Public Record Office Victoria program for the storage of records which the Keeper of Public Records has approved for eventual destruction or which are awaiting a decision as to their archival value. archive The whole body of records of continuing value of an organisation or individual. Sometimes called ‘corporate memory’ (AS 4390.1 –1996). archives Records considered to have continuing or permanent value that have been, or will be, transferred to the custody of an archival organisation; also used to refer to the buildings in which archival records are stored and to organisations that have responsibility for archival records (Private lives, public records ). consignment A consignment comprises record items belonging to a single record series that has been transferred to the custody of Public Record Office Victoria as part of the one accession. A consignment may comprise the whole or only part of a series. Each consignment is identified by a code (e.g. VPRS 1234/P1). digital / electronic A record produced, housed or transmitted by electronic means rather than physical means. A record expressed record in an electronic digital format. A record stored in a form that only a computer can process. digitised record / digital image

An electronic reproduction of a picture, photograph or physical item (e.g. letter or document) that can be stored on computer or disk, and can be viewed, transmitted, manipulated and/or printed via computer. A subset of digital records (Private lives, public records).

disposal A range of processes associated with implementing appraisal decisions. These include the retention, deletion or destruction of records in or from recordkeeping systems. They may also include the migration or transmission of records between recordkeeping systems, and the transfer of custody or ownership of records. Within the Victorian public sector, records are appraised to determine their significance (business, legal or historical) and then judged to be either of temporary or permanent value to the state. Government bodies are guided by standards or schedules issued by PROV to regulate the disposal of records.

record Something that documents a particular event or decision, or a document and its contents that have some evidentiary value. A record can take many forms: • a document in writing • a book, map, plan, graph or drawing • a photograph • a label marking or other writing which identifies or describes anything of which it forms part, or to which it is attached by any means whatsoever • a disc, tape, soundtrack or other device in which sounds or other data (not being visual images) are embodied so as to be capable (with or without the aid of some other equipment) of being reproduced therefrom • a film, negative, tape or other device in which one or more visual images is embodied so as to be capable (as aforesaid) of being reproduced therefrom • anything whatsoever on which is marked any words, figures, letters or symbols which are capable of carrying a definite meaning to persons conversant with them (AS ISO 15489.1). recordkeeping Making and maintaining complete, accurate and reliable evidence of business transactions in the form of recorded information. records management

Field of management responsible for the efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and disposal of records, including processes for capturing and maintaining evidence of and information about business activities and transactions in the form of records (AS ISO 15489.1).

repository The building (or part of the building) in which the collection/holdings are housed. series A group of records which are recorded or maintained by the same agency or agencies and which:

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are in the same numerical, alphabetical, chronological or other identifiable sequence; or

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r esult from the same accumulation or filing process, perform the same function or may be of similar physical shape or information content.

standard A set of criteria that states a level of requirement for Victorian agencies. Standards are established by the Keeper of Public Records under the Public records act 1973. Standards can be compliance-oriented or oriented towards best practice. temporary records Records which are appraised as being of value for a bounded time span and which may be destroyed once they are older than that time span.

disposal authority A legal document that defines the retention periods and consequent disposal actions authorised for specific classes of records (AS 4390.1-1996).

transfer The removal of public records from the offices which have created or inherited them. Custody, ownership and/or responsibility for the records is changed (e.g. from the office to Public Record Office Victoria) (AS ISO 15489.1).

permanent records Records which have been appraised as being of permanent value to the State of Victoria and which must be kept forever.

unsentenced Records which have not yet been appraised and whose status is therefore not yet determined (Public records act 1973). records

place of deposit A location approved by the Victorian government minister responsible for PROV for the storage by community (POD) groups of temporary records of local value.

VEO A VERS Encapsulated Object is a record which has been encapsulated using eXtensible Markup Language (XML) as outlined in PROS 99/007 Specification 3, conforms to the VERS metadata scheme as outlined in PROS 99/007 Specification 2 and which contains documents expressed in a long term preservation format as outlined in PROS 99/007 Specification 4.

provenance A principle that involves establishing the administrative context in which records were created and used. The Provenance of records includes their original creators and users, and the subsequent administrators who were responsible for the recordkeeping system in which the records were kept (Private lives, public records). public record A record made or received by any person employed in a public office while carrying out his or her public duties (Public records act 1973). public records Information or documents created as part of the activities of state government departments, agencies and local government (Private lives, public records). reading room Area set aside at Public Record Office Victoria’s centre for public access to records (Private lives, public records).

VERS Victorian Electronic Records Strategy (VERS): a framework of standards, guidance, training, consultancy and implementation projects, centred on the goal of reliably and authentically archiving electronic records. VPRS An abbreviation for Victorian Public Record Series. A VPRS number is allocated to each record series when it is transferred to Public Record Office Victoria. 12. J. Ellis (ed.), Keeping Archives, 1993, The Australian Society of Archivists Inc., Australia. 13. B. Fensham et al., Private lives, public records, 2004, Public Record Office Victoria, Australia.