The National Archives have just announced that, in the 2007 self-assessment programme for local authority services in England and Wales, the NRO retained its status as three-star archive service, the highest category.
It also secured the highest overall score of any archive repository in England and Wales.
Our score of 84% is an improvement on last year's of 79%, when we were just one per cent behind the first-placed archive service.
This year, we achieved three-star ratings in each of the five assessment categories and, in each and overall, were well above the averages for the East of England, county archive services and nationally.
County Archivist, Dr John Alban said, 'This success is largely due to the magnificent team effort by NRO staff over the year. I should like to congratulate and thank everyone most warmly for their contribution to this wonderful achievement'.
The National Archives' announcement comes hot on the heels of a prestigious award to the NRO by the Black History Foundation.
The Black History Foundation, which is based in Birmingham, selected the Norfolk Record Office's exhibition on Norfolk and Transatlantic Slavery, which was part of a range of associated events and community work connected with the 'Norfolk's Hidden Heritage' project, as the 'outstanding contribution to Black heritage in the East of England for 2007'.
The award was presented at the UK Black Heritage Fair, which was held at Millennium Point in Birmingham, on Saturday, 8 December.
The 'Norfolk's Hidden Heritage' project is a successful partnership between the Norwich and Norfolk Racial Equality Council, the Norfolk Record Office and the Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The exhibition commemorated the lives of those enslaved on plantations owned by people connected with Norfolk, looked at the involvement of Africans in Norfolk's history, something the project's research has confirmed stretches back at least 400 years, and examined the involvement of the people of the county in supporting and opposing transatlantic slavery. It also invited people to consider the legacy of slavery for the county today.
'It is marvellous to receive this recognition,' said Dr Richard Maguire, the NRO-based historian working on the project. 'We wanted to produce a landmark exhibition that informed people about an aspect of Norfolk's history that was previously unexplored, but also to commemorate the lives of the Africans, both enslaved and free, who were linked to this county by this crime against humanity. This award acknowledges that we have managed to do this.'
Updated: 14 December 2007