This statement sets out the functions carried out by Oxfordshire History Centre and clarifies what information is available for re-use under the Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2015 (the “2015 Regulations”).

Under the 2015 Regulations, Oxfordshire History Centre is required to publish a list of cultural public sector information assets, both published and unpublished. View Oxfordshire History Centre’s Information Asset Register (pdf format, 89Kb)

Why re-use?

Public sector information constitutes a large, diverse and valuable pool of resources. Re-use of that information provides opportunities for economic and social benefits, while also promoting transparency and accountability of the public sector.

What is re-use?

Re-use means using information for a purpose different from the one for which it was initially produced, held, collected or disseminated.

Information falling within Oxfordshire History Centre’s Public Task may be subject to the 2015 Regulations.

Information means:

• data of any kind (including textual, image or sound)
• in any format (hard copy or electronic)
• produced, held or disseminated by a cultural sector body.

Oxfordshire History Centre’s Public Task

Oxfordshire History Centre provides an archive and local studies service which acts as the corporate and social memory of the county of Oxfordshire, ensuring a legacy for future generations.

The service collects, protects, promotes, celebrates and makes accessible the written and pictorial heritage of Oxfordshire for researchers in its local communities and worldwide.

A brief overview of our collections is provided on the Depositing Documents page of our website.

Oxfordshire History Centre is an Oxfordshire County Council service and provides storage and access for the archives of Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and its successors under a contract of 2012.

We also have an explicit duty to preserve and make available Church of England records under an agreement of 1998 with the Diocese of Oxford.

Our core functions are carried out within a complex legal framework including the:

• Local Government (Records) Act 1962
• Local Government Act 1972
• Public Records Acts 1958 and 1967
• Parochial Registers and Records Measure, 1978 (amended 1992)
• Manorial Documents Rules 1959 (amended 1963 and 1967)
• Law of Property Act 1922 (amended 1924)
• Tithe Act 1936 and the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964.

The information available for re-use

You can see, copy and re-use information that is produced by Oxfordshire History Centre (e.g. our catalogues, indexes, and policy statements), provided that:

• it does not contain personal data subject to data protection (e.g. our accessions registers)
• it is subject to a third party agreement (e.g. data included in our contracts with Oxfordshire Family History Society and DC Thomson).

You can also see archives and local studies (including photographic and oral history) material held at Oxfordshire History Centre free of charge during our opening hours.

Catalogues of our archive and local studies collections can be searched on our Heritage Search website. Catalogues of our photographic and oral history collections on our Picture Oxon website.

You can copy some material for personal use, but the law for re-use is more restrictive and, since the copyright of a significant proportion of our collections belongs to a third party, such material falls outside the scope of the 2015 Regulations. Any copying that is done must conform to our Copying and Copyright Guidelines, and current Copying Charges, including reproduction fees will apply.

Information out of scope for re-use

• Information falling outside our Archives or Local Studies collection policies, and therefore outside our Public Task.
• Information for which extant copyright belongs to a third party (i.e. other than Oxfordshire County Council).
• Information containing personal data is protected under the Data Protection Act 1998.
• Information subject to release under information access legislation – e.g. Freedom of Information Act 2000. (Once the information has been made available under access legislation, then it will become eligible for re-use).
• Information that is exempt from release under information access legislation on grounds of protection of personal data, statistical confidentiality or commercial confidentiality.
• Information constituting a cultural resource that is subject to an exclusive arrangement in relation to digitisation.

Review and complaints

This statement is due to be reviewed in the event of any major service changes or in December 2022. If you have any queries or complaints about the re-use of Oxfordshire History Centre information, please contact us by email.