Exeter Cathedral Library & Archives has become the first archive service in the UK to be awarded Accredited Archive Status for the third time.
The Cathedral tested and piloted this national benchmarking scheme back in 2011-12, achieving official Accreditation during its 2013 launch. To achieve Accredited status, staff demonstrated to an external review panel – composed of experts from The National Archives and regional archive services – how well the Cathedral is protecting, managing and opening up its unique collections.
The testing process is rigorous but rewarding. Every three years Exeter Cathedral submits an interim health check, and every six years it undergoes a full evaluation involving an extensive report, an official site visit and a panel review. The Accreditation process benchmarks the Cathedral against the highest national standards, allowing staff to identify strengths and areas for improvement.
The panel highlighted Exeter Cathedral’s deep commitment to inclusivity, its high standards in collections documentation, the progress it has made in making legacy catalogue information digitally available, and cited the Cathedral’s extensive outreach activity as a credit to the service.
Exeter Cathedral is grateful to its staff, volunteers, visitors and researchers for the support it receives to ensure its Library & Archives thrive.