This section contains details of policies and legislation that relate to or have an impact on archives and rare books, such as the Data Protection Act, and the Freedom of Information Act.
It also includes helpful links to guidance and tutorials on how to get the most out of documents for your research including reading Latin, developing paleographical skills and using maps and plans.
Policies and Legislation which impact on the use of archives and rare books
In the first instance please refer to the University's own web pages relating to this which can be found on the Copyright Information pages, here you will find helpful guidance and details of the person responsible for Copyright within the University. For more in depth information about the subject you may find Tim Padfield's publication helpful.
Useful information about this can be found at The National Archives website, including links to the Lord Chancellor's Codes of Practice
Useful information about this can be found at The National Archives website. The JISC Data Protection Code of Practice for the HE and FE sectors is also helpful. Details of the University's Data Protection Officer can be found on the Legal Services web pages.
Reading and understanding documents
Latin and Paleography
Maps and Plans
Special Collections holds many maps and plans throughout the collection representing Birmingham, the West Midlands, Warwickshire, the surrounding counties and the wider British Isles and around the globe. Often they are included in archive collections (see the Archive catalogue) but they can also be found in the rare book collection in volumes relating to the particular locality (see the Library catalogue for rare books). Maps and plans can be an incredibly useful resource but they are often hard to interpret and understand. The following links provide good starting points for learning how to use and understand maps and plans;
Map of Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania from the CMS collection
