Bath & North East Somerset Council

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Visiting Bath Record Office

We hope you will enjoy your visit to Bath Record Office!

The guidance below will help you prepare for your visit, as well as our FAQs page.

 

Opening times

  • Our opening days are Tuesday to Friday.
  • There are two bookable sessions each day. These are from 10 am - 1 pm or 2 pm - 5 pm (4.30pm on Friday).

Booking an appointment

Appointments are essential as space is limited.

  • Appointments must be made 48 hours in advance and can be booked by phone or email. Please see our contact us page.
  • Appointments will normally be limited to one morning or one afternoon session per week in the first instance. Please respect this to enable as many people as possible to have the chance to book a session.

You will need to provide the following information when making a booking:

  • Your full name, address, email address or phone number.
  • Document references for pre-ordering or a detailed description of your research subject.
  • If you require either a microfilm reader or public access computer then you can make a specific booking for these resources.

Ordering documents

  • Documents and books must be pre-ordered where possible. Please use our online catalogues to find the references for the items you wish to consult.
  • Documents can be pre-ordered at the time of booking and must be ordered at least 48 hours before your visit.
  • You can pre-order up to 12 documents per visit. If you have particular requirements relating to your document requests, please phone or email us to discuss these.

What to do when you arrive

  • Arrive front entrance to the Guildhall on the High Street.
  • If you have accessbility needs you may use the market entrance. There is a lift to the basement.
  • State the purpose of your visit at the door and at the reception desk.
  • Make your way through the ground floor to the south staircase.
  • Use the steps down to the basement where a member of staff will greet you.
  • Place bags, etc., in allocated lockers.

In the searchroom

  • You will be allocated a table or microfilm/fiche reader as booked.
  • Your ordered documents will be available for you to work through.
  • Hand sanitiser stations will be available for you to use during your visit.