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Volunteering

We welcome volunteers and really value the contribution they make to our work.

By joining one of our volunteer projects you'll:

  • Help preserve Norfolk's archives and improve access to our collections
  • Get hands-on experience of working with Norfolk's archive heritage
  • Improve your skills and knowledge
  • Do something worthwhile
  • Meet other people interested in history

You must be aged 18 or over to volunteer with us.

Volunteers work at the Record Office Tuesdays to Thursdays, generally for half a day per week. We also run projects which you can do from home. We don't usually offer full-time or short-term placements.

We have about 20 regular volunteers. Sometimes you may have to wait for a place to become available.

Current opportunities to volunteer from home

Indexing Norwich Prison registers of prisoners, 1880-1924

Using digital images of the prison registers, volunteers are extracting details of each prisoner, including their name, occupation, age, and crime. Once added to the NRO's catalogue, this information will enable people to find entries in the registers for individuals they are searching for, or for specific types of crimes.

This project is currently full. If you would like to join the waiting list please email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk

Recording for 'Reading from the Archives'

Join a small group of volunteers who record extracts from our documents for our 'Reading from the Archives' sessions. You will receive training on how to use Audacity and Microsoft PowerPoint to record, edit and export your recording via a toolkit (or you are welcome to use other software if you prefer). Before each session you will be sent a list of document transcripts and asked to choose the one you would like to record. Once complete, these recordings will be played during the session and included in the version published on our YouTube channel.

If you would like to join this project, please email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk putting 'For the attention of Education and Outreach' in the subject heading.

Why not also try our online transcription project? For more details see the Volunteering at King's Lynn Borough Archives section.

Volunteer projects on site at the Record Office 

Indexing Norwich building control plans, 1895-1945

An opportunity to help index architectural plans of Norwich buildings, including houses, chapels, shops, factories and schools. You can find out more about building control plans with volunteers on the NRO blog and also read a volunteer's experiences of the project.

This project is currently full. If you would like to join the waiting list, please email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk.

Indexing post 1857 wills

Use our original will registers to index the names, places of residence and occupations of the people whose wills are recorded in the registers.

This project is currently full. If you would like to join the waiting list, please email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk.

Cleaning and repackaging the Hornor Collection of maps, 18th century-20th century

Volunteers are using conservation-grade sponges to gently remove surface dirt from maps, and help preserve them for the future. You can find out more about the Hornor Collection project on the NRO blog.

This project is currently full. If you would like to join the waiting list, please email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk.

Archive Packaging and Seal Sock Group

These volunteers assist with the long-term preservation of the NRO's collections by improving document packaging. This includes transferring documents into archive-quality folders and boxes; removing metal fastenings; and sewing foam seal socks to protect document seals. Members meet as a group one morning every 4-6 weeks.

Archive packaging and seal sock group role description (PDF) [79KB]

Assisting at education and outreach events

There are also occasional opportunities to help our education and outreach team with events.

Writing posts for the NRO's blog

We are always looking for people to research and write posts for the NRO's blog. After researching documents in the NRO's searchroom, you will write a 300 or 1000 word blog post about them. Some documents are available digitally if you are unable to visit in person. We run training sessions periodically (see the events page of our blog for upcoming dates) or email  to request a toolkit. The training and toolkit cover how to carry out research, writing for an audience and an introduction to our blogs. If you are happy for us to do so, we will include your name under your published blog which you can use on your CV or other applications if required.

Placements and Work Experience

Find out more about our Introduction to Archive Research days and blogging placements.

Volunteering at King's Lynn Borough Archives

 Volunteers based at the King's Lynn Borough Archives are currently transcribing documents from the Borough's records. These include the Hall Books, Quarter Sessions books, medieval charters, and more.

They are also helping to index building control plans for the town, dating from 1883 to c1959.

Our Lynn volunteers also research and write posts for the NRO blog.

If you wish to volunteer from home, you can help transcribe the King's Lynn Hall Books, using our Zooniverse transcription webpage. To find out more, see our blog post about King's Lynn Borough Archives. This is an unsupervised project.

For information about volunteering at Lynn, email norfrec@norfolk.gov.uk.