Conservation Update – Brierley Parish Council Minute books

Here is another update from Paul Stebbing, Archives and Local Studies Manager, about the conservation of the minute books of the former Brierley Parish Council.

“During 2023 we continued to have repair work done on the minute books of the former Brierley Parish Council. A run of 14 minute books were transferred to us in 2016, covering the period 1915-1975. The books had been severely damaged by water and recovering them so that they could be used by researchers was always going to be a challenge! So since 2016 we have had two of the fourteen volumes worked on each year. The two recently worked on were from the 1910s and 1920s and had been particularly badly damaged. But conscious that these volumes contained some of the only surviving minutes of Brierley Parish Council, it was vital that we rescued them. The work of parish councils traditionally included street lighting, allotments, footpaths, recreation grounds, war memorials, village halls, public seating and burial grounds – so an incredible amount of local history information!

The conservator who worked on the books commented that the leather had significantly broken down due to extensive water damage, and the covers therefore had to be replaced, and every page delicately cleaned. Bespoke boxes were then made for each volume. Despite the condition of the volumes when they arrived with us, none of the historical information they contain has been lost, and they can now be safely handled and used by researchers.

Without our conservation programme, such items would likely deteriorate further, putting their long-term survival in jeopardy.”