Since October 2012 I have had the great pleasure to be a member of the stakeholder forum of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/campaigns/public-record-office-northern-ireland-proni), which meets every three months to receive updates about the archive's work and priorities, and where it also listens to feedback from people from across all walks of life in Northern Ireland who have a vested interest in its work.
I was first asked to join the forum as a genealogist and to act as its 'remote member', in other words to provide feedback from beyond the physical jurisdiction which PRONI represents, and to comment on its services, particularly its online services. In return I had permission to regularly report through this blog on practically all aspects of PRONI's latest work, to help keep the genealogy world updated. (I wasn't able to attend the last meeting in December, and so my most recent blog post from the meetings was in September, available at https://scottishgenes.blogspot.com/2025/09/major-relaunch-of-proni-website-later.html).
It's been a fun and happy relationship over the last thirteen years, which I have enjoyed immensely, but this year I am preparing myself for one of the biggest gambles of my working life (which I will hopefully announce more about in a few weeks!). Sadly this means that I am having to make some changes to my usual routine, one of the consequences of which is that I informed PRONI earlier today that I am regrettably stepping down from the forum with immediate effect. In my note to the team I stated the following:
"It has been an absolute honour to be able to attend the stakeholder forum over the last few years, to hear about updates, and to hear from fellow forum members also, a truly brilliant bunch. To the day I die I will always promote PRONI as the best exemplar of an archive that I have ever come across. The archive's commitment to taking its work out to the community, its partnerships, and its transparency are just phenomenal, not to mention the small matter of the amazing work you all do in making accessible Ulster's records. I truly think PRONI is the only national archive I have ever had dealings with that actually understands its user base."
I stand by every word of this. The community engagement that PRONI is involved with on a daily basis, opening up its records - opening up our records (I am an Ulsterman!) - to public access has been an absolute joy to watch and to report on over the years, and should embarrass some other institutions which pale by comparison. PRONI knows why it is there, it knows who funds it, and it knows how to serve its user base, and it has genuinely been an honour, and by far one of the most enjoyable parts of my working life over the last few years, with regular visits back home to Northern Ireland to visit the institution, both for research purposes and for meetings. I will still be popping over for research purposes from time to time, and look forward to doing so!
Thank you once again PRONI - in particular to Stephen, Janet, Gavin, and all fellow forum members - and best of luck for 2026!
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. To purchase in the USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.
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