Aims and Objectives

The aim of the Archive is to preserve, promote and celebrate the sound and moving image heritage of Wales.

The Archive's main objectives are:

to maintain and develop a collection of sound and moving images which provides a comprehensive reflection of the life of Wales and the Welsh from the earliest days of recording.

The Archive acquires its material through agreements with various donors and depositors, including producers and distributors, companies, institutions and groups, and members of the public. It is a designated archive for recording programmes off-air.

to safeguard the collection for future generations

Audio-visual media are fragile by nature, and some of them have only a short life span. This means that much maintenance work is needed on collections such as these. A continual programme of examination, repair and copying is in place, in order to secure the future of these materials.

The short-lived nature of some formats means that a wide range of obsolete machines has to be maintained. The collection is housed in purpose-built vaults where humidity and temperature are controlled to recognised professional standards.

to document and interpret the collection, releasing its potential to users

The keys to 'unlock' the treasures of the collection are cataloguing and indexing. The aim is to provide useful descriptions for the researcher, to facilitate the task of finding exactly what he or she needs.


to provide access to the collection

There are viewing and listening facilities at Aberystwyth. Here, the collection is used by up to a thousand users and researchers annually. Subject to legal restrictions, copies of some items are supplied to remote users for specific purposes. The Archive is part of the BUFVC initiative for the provision of materials for higher education throughout Britain.

to promote the collection and our heritage to a wide range of users and audiences

As well as arranging screenings and talks for numerous local organisations each year, the Archive contributes to film festivals and other events, and images from the collection are often seen on television programmes in Wales and beyond.

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