Norfolk Record Office

The Norfolk Record Office holds millions of documents, filling almost 10 miles of shelves. They have been created by a variety of organizations and people, past and present, range in date from the eleventh century to the twenty-first and relate to every town and parish in Norfolk. Among them are royal charters, title deeds, manorial court rolls, registers, accounts, minute books, correspondence, diaries, maps, architectural and other drawings, photographs, music, music and oral histories.

In 2005, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council recognized the exceptional range and depth of Norfolk’s archives when it ‘Designated’ the Record Office's entire collection as being of outstanding importance.

The Norfolk Record Office launched the Norfolk Sound Archive in April 2003. Its purpose is to collect, preserve and provide public access to sound recordings relevant to life in Norfolk. The Norfolk Sound Archive is part of the Norfolk Record Office, a joint service of Norfolk County Council and District Councils in Norfolk. The aims of the Sound Archive are given below. More information can be found by clicking on the appropriate link.

• Provide information on holdings and access to original recordings

• Preserve sound recordings

• Locate existing sound recordings that are worth preserving for the future

• Provide support and training for on-going and new oral history projects

• Promote the use of sound recordings, particularly within education

• Links to organizations who also hold collections of sound recordings relating to Norfolk and who are carrying out oral history work in the county

Education Service

The Archive Education and Outreach Service aims to make the documents in the Norfolk Record Office accessible to all ages, through a variety of means. We work closely with both schools and groups of adults and these pages give more detail on what we can offer. If you are looking for opportunities for individuals – for children or adults – please go to our events page.