Who is the audience local studies

Potential clients and customers for local studies

Anyone may use local studies. Much of the use is likely to come from your council area, however, there will be researchers from many locations interested in the library’s unique collections and services.

Clients can include:

• Local community including residents, businesses, artists, workers and content creators/reusers
• community groups including local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Land Councils, cultural groups, service groups and resident action groups
• family history researchers
• people restoring their home or seeking house histories
• historians
• researchers
• local history societies
• council staff
• councillors
• heritage consultants
• government agencies
• media
• teachers and students
• visitors

Different relationships may exist for partners and stakeholders, who may also be clients. Strong and accessible local studies collections and services provide the opportunity to work with stakeholders and partners. This relies on trust between the libraries and community members leading to possible donations and further information gathering or content creation. Partners and stakeholders may contribute financially or in kind.

Guidelines for having a local studies collection

The value of a local studies collection

Who is the audience local studies

Collection policy local studies

Managing collections local studies

Providing access local studies

Rights and permissions local studies

Staff local studies

Researching local studies

Programs and publicity local studies

Evaluation local studies