Preserving the Local Newspaper Archive
The Preserving the Local Newspaper Archive project ran from March 2025 to September 2026 and was funded through a Resilience Grant from The National Archives. It was designed to contribute to our understanding of the value of local media to people and places. The project began at Coventry University and, from January 2026, continued at Birmingham City University. While Professor Dave Harte served as project lead at Birmingham City University, most of the hard work was undertaken by Dr Rachel Matthews and Gary Collins, who worked as consultants on the project.
The key output from the project was a ‘toolkit’ which you can now download.
→ DOWNLOAD: Preserving Local Newspaper Archives FULL toolkit
→ DOWNLOAD: Preserving Local Newspaper Archives SUMMARY toolkit
About the project
Focussing on the legacy local newspaper industry, the Preserving the Local Newspaper Archive project poses challenging questions about how their contemporary presence and historic vestiges as a product and process contribute to vibrant communities.
The daily and weekly local newspaper has been a ubiquitous material presence around the globe since its inception in the 18th century and many of the normative assumptions relating to the form and function of local media arise from its practice. However, in the 21st century that presence is shrinking as digital operations take up less space than analogue print products and the associated armies of commercial and production staff are nolonger needed. This shrinkage – which is particularly acute in the US and the UK – is exacerbated by declining revenues associated with the challenge of online competitors. This means large landmark offices are earmarked for closure by those seeking a sustainable economic future for legacy brands.
One casualty of this process is the archival record associated with these titles, which in many cases documents centuries of local life and events. Often, these archives represent the only surviving record of significant happenings within a community. Yet, because their value is frequently overlooked, collections are seldom preserved intact when newspaper offices close. In some cases, materials are transferred to official archives with the capacity to accommodate what are often substantial physical collections. Owners may retain selected items perceived to hold commercial value. More commonly, however, responsibility for their preservation falls to community groups that recognise their cultural and historical significance, but may lack the specialist expertise and resources required for archival management and long-term conservation.
Participants at a project workshop at Birmingham City University in June 2026
Project network and toolkit
In response to these issues the project has developed a toolkit and network to support people working this area. The project has brought together a range of participants to co-create the toolkit, including heritage professionals from the archive, library and preservation sectors, industry representatives and community groups. Initially designed as a pilot project in the Midlands, participants include: Warwickshire Library and Information Service, the Stamford Mercury Archive Trust, the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, the University of Leicester and the Worcester Civic Society.
In addition to developing hands-on guidance for those working in this area, the group has also considered the value of these collections and how the articulation of that value can help advocate for their future conservation. The findings contribute to new theoretical perspectives on the relationship between local media practices and communities; these include the local media as community activator and the conception that local media can be considered part of the fabric of places. These expanded understandings have consequences for policy reactions to the contemporary decline of local media.