DARP
The Digital Archives Regional Pilot (DARP) addressed several issues that had to be resolved in order for a regional digital repository to be set up, as well as the costs that would occur from this.
This was a test-bed digital preservation project, on a small scale, using Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire as case studies.
The project resulted in a report which was published jointly by the East of England Regional Archive Council (EERAC) and Museums, Libraries and Archives East of England (MLA East of England). The report describes the pilot project which was designed to investigate the issues which would need to be resolved if a regional digital repository were set up, and the costs which would arise from this. The report presents the results of two years' work and is probably the first realistic attempt to point the way forward.
Taking as its starting point the anticipated needs of local authorities, the report looks in detail at the processes and costs involved in preserving and managing digital records of the types routinely dealt with by local authority records managers and archivists, including privately deposited material. The two local authorities involved in the project were Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire County Councils, and the expertise in digital preservation was provided by the UK Data Archive, which is one of the longest established digital repositories in the country and the only one approved by TNA for the deposit of electronic Public Records.
Archive contribution
The UK Data Archive provided the technical and metadata components of the work and contributed to the final reports.
Principal Investigator: Kevin Schürer
Funder: East of England Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (EEMLAC)
Dates: August 2004 - March 2005
Contact: UK Data Service
