A conference for all record keepers
The ARA Conference is a great opportunity for Records Managers, Information Governance professionals and anyone involved in digital preservation.
Uniquely in the record-keeping sector our conference attracts people from a range of disciplines and employment sectors – records managers, information governance professionals, archivists, archive conservators, academics and more.
This often gives a new perspective on familiar topics and, particularly for those in records management, information governance, data handling, provides more than just the technicalities and sets innovation and best practice into a wider context.
The conference will be held in Bristol and on-line from 27th-29th August. Registrations close on 5th August. Full information can be found here: https://openingdoors.eventsair.com/ara2025/
Some of the sessions that might be of interest are:
Safeguards for Facing AI Challenges – Reimagining How to Apply Foundational Recordkeeping Principles
Margaret Hermesmeyer, Director And Immediate Past Chair ARMA International
Face AI challenges head-on with recordkeeping safeguards. The guiding principles of the ARMA Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles (The Principles) help identify needed safeguards to evaluate recordkeeping solutions for challenges such as AI. Attendees will gain an understanding of The Principles and ARMA’s Information Governance Implementation Model (IGIMv2.0). Attendees will also explore using these tools as safeguards for moving Records Management and Information Governance (IG) programs forward in today's information landscape.
Global Collaboration: The Vision of the Global Information Consortium (GIC)
Mrs Anne Cornish, Rimpa Global
In a world increasingly shaped by data and digital transformation, the need for a unified voice in records and information management (RIM) has never been more urgent. This panel introduces the Global Information Consortium (GIC), a newly formed collective of international professional associations dedicated to advancing global standards, collaboration, and innovation across the information management landscape.
Interfacing Information Governance with the Ethical Agenda
Mr Reynold Leming, Managing Director, Informu Solutions Ltd
Any organisation needs to ensure that it is meeting its operational goals in a manner that does not adversely ipact planet and people. Good practice in data governance, records management and information rights can directly support this. Pulling together knowledge of international standards, accreditation schemes, law and sector initiatives, this talk will set out thoughts on a strategy and action plan to interface information governance with the ethical agenda, The future of Records Management with AI ToolsAndrea Mcintosh and Jacqueline Stockwell, Leadership Through Data
In this presentation we will be discussing the use of AI tools in archives and records management and how using them will benefit the work we do and through automation, better decision support, and changing our approach to appraisal by leveraging AI tools.
Future First - How to remain sustainable in IM
Mrs Anne Cornish, Ceo. Rimpa Global
This interactive and engaging workshop presentation will challenge participants to think critically about the future of the industry and their role within it. The session will explore and evaluate the key aspects of current practices, including the skills required to remain competitive, the changes needed in practices and processes, and how we can reimagine the delivery of our services to meet evolving demands. Beyond operational shifts, the workshop will emphasise the importance of mindset, encouraging participants to adopt forward-thinking attitudes that embrace innovation and adaptability.
Adapting skills in a changing workplace
Ms Noeleen Schenk, Director and Ms Siobhan King, Senior Consultant, Metaxis
The workshop format will consist of a mix of small group working and facilitated group discussions, designed to encourage a wide-ranging exploration of our skills and the proactive steps we can all take to engage with our organisations to recognise them. The tone and aim of this interactive workshop is to enthuse delegates and make them realise how valuable and transferable many of our skills really are and encourage them to look forward to the future, confident that they have a place in it.
Record management and digital archiving in the National Digital Archives in the Czech Republic
Mrs. Pavlina Nimrichtrova, Archivist, National Archives
The presentation will offer a comprehensive overview of the National Digital Archives and the National Archives Portal as critical instruments for the appraisal of digital-born records originating from public agency record management systems, databases, and other information systems across all levels of public administration.
Innovations in record management and publicity at the National Archives of Singapore
Mr Joshua Kwah, Archivist, National Archives of Singapore (National Library Board)
This paper presents various innovations at the National Archives of Singapore (NAS), to improve recordkeeping for Singapore’s Whole-of-Government and promote wider awareness of our records to the public.
Perceptions of records officials and nurses in selected Tshwane public hospitals towards AI technology systems in managing records.
Ms Raisibe Ledwaba and Prof Lefose Makgahlela, University of Limpopo
The emergence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) has gained momentum in recent years, leading to organisations starting to adopt these technologies in order to become competitive and more productive in their businesses. Poor records management in public hospitals has been identified as one of the challenges faced in terms of timely assisting patients to avoid long queues when they seek medical attention. These challenges can be mitigated if AI technology systems can be implemented to manage records. The purpose of this study is to assess the perceptions of records officials and nurses in selected Tshwane public hospitals towards the introduction of AI technology systems in managing records.
Kit Versus Culture: Using Preserve365 to Shape the Royal College of Nursing's Digital Archiving Future
Mr. Joshua Nelson, Digital Archivist and Emily Edwards, Records Assistant, Royal College Of Nursing
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Group Archive has transformed in recent years. The recent adoption of Preserve365, a Preservica product that allows immediate and seamless transfers of records from SharePoint into our digital archive, marks an opportunity for our team to embed good archive and records management practice across the RCN. However, we have been presented with technical and organisational issues. There is a disparity between the leap in technological progress and remaining cultural resistance to records management across the organisation—kit versus culture.
From Policy to Practice: Advancing Digital Preservation at the National Library of Ireland
Mrs Leona Fearon, Digital Preservation Analyst, National Library Of Ireland
In 2023 the National Library of Ireland launched its inaugural Digital Preservation policy driven by the need to collect, protect, and share Ireland’s digital heritage. Since the policy launch, one of the key changes since then, has been the creation of a new team within the Library: Digital Preservation and Repository Services (DPRS). This session explores the implementation of this policy two years on, and the practical steps taken to embed the guiding principles behind the policy.
Practical Digital Preservation in Greater Manchester
Miss Michelle Owen, Digital Preservation Archivist, Manchester Archives And Local Studies and Jan Hicks, Exhibitions and Collections Coordinator, Oldham Archive
Our paper will present the findings from our TNA Resilience Grant-funded project “GM Digital Kits”. This project allowed the 10 local authority archive services that form the Greater Manchester Archives and Local Studies Partnership (GMALSP) to take the essential first step in building a collaborative digital preservation programme.
The environmental impact of digital information management: it's time to think about sustainable practices
Ms Joy Siller, Managing Director, Siller Systems Administration
This paper will raise awareness of current sustainability issues including digital waste, energy use, the surge of artificial intelligence and cloud use, and the consequences of information appraisal, storage and preservation decisions and actions. It will discuss possible action and further steps that need to be taken by information managers and their colleagues.
Record Surveys: a classic concept for the future
Mrs Fiona Bourne, Archive Manager, Royal College Of Nursing Archive
If you qualified in the UK in the last few decades, your training would have included basic principles that you may now consider relegated to physical records. However, the simple records survey should not be dismissed as unnecessary in a sector pivoting into digital domination.
Prioritising Appraisal: A How-To in Managing Backlogs, Storeroom Space and Unintended Consequences
Miss Abigail Hartley, Appraisal Archivist And Archive Collections Manager, University Of Edinburgh
Appraisal is one facet of the archival workflow which has always received attention in public and academic discourse, particularly concerning where and when we dispose of material. Essentially, appraisal is scary, and archivists are often without the time to carry it out, leading to far reaching consequences. The talk and Q&A session will give insight on appraisal which goes beyond theory to better help institutions wanting to tackle backlogs in a meaningful manner.
Puzzles and Possibilities: Improving Appraisal for the Next Generation
Mr Colin Graham, Curatorial Archivist, Public Record Office Of Northern Ireland (PRONI)
As Archivists and Records Managers, we are constantly working within cross-generational perspectives; wherein our working lives are at once shaped by the legacies of the past, the priorities of the present and concerns for the future. This is especially true for Appraisal, which at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) is one of the key mechanisms for collecting records which have been created by NI Government Departments and the NI Public Sector for future generations of researchers. Simultaneously, Appraisal is becoming an increasingly complex exercise for current and future archivists.
Forming International Connections
Isabel Lauterjung, Archives and Records Association International Group
This individual session will consist of a presentation by members of the International Committee to showcase progress of this newly established group and introduce ARA membership to our work and activities. As part of the presentation we will provide background to our formation and remit in supporting UK and Irish recordkeeping professionals working overseas, and for overseas recordkeeping professionals working to UK or Irish standards.
Record-keeping Strategy 2025 onwards
This session will launch ARA's 2025-30 strategy following the consultation that took place at the end of 2024 and through the Spring of 2025
Full programme with (where received) abstracts can be found here: