The sale of the buildings occupied by the Archives is part of the Federal Government s policy to divest the Commonwealth of special purpose real estate, a category to which the Archives repositories belong. In line with Department of Finance and Administration policy, all Archives buildings, except for the Archives heritage building in Canberra s Parliamentary Triangle, will be offered for sale. The Commonwealth s decision to sell the repositories coincides with the Archives ongoing national review of the content of its collection. Changed property arrangements will allow the Archives to focus on improved accessibility. In diversifying how it delivers material from its collection, the Archives is already making digitised copies of original records available on its website.
Research shows that the website is increasingly where most access to the collection occurs.
Other forms of access to the originals and by photocopies, through publications and exhibitions will continue. Reviewing the collection and positioning it to best serve the needs of users is a core and ongoing function of the Archives, as it is for other collecting institutions. The Archives will engage in extensive consultation to reassure the public that valuable records will always be retained, that records of local as opposed to national interest will remain in the place of creation and that accessibility to the collection will continue to be enhanced and promoted.