FUNDING has been secured to help preserve thousands of historic sound recordings.
Staffordshire County Council's Archives and Heritage service is working alongside other local authorities from across the Midlands and the University of Leicester who have secured £282,082 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The money will support a 12-month project to investigate how valuable sound recordings can be digitally preserved before they are lost forever.
Research carried out by the Institute for Digital Culture in 2025 identified up to 18,000 reel-to-reel and cassette tapes held by libraries, archives and museums across the Midlands.
The collections contain a wealth of local history, including interviews, community memories, music recordings and local radio broadcasts.
But many are deteriorating due to age, while the equipment needed to play them is becoming increasingly rare.
Cllr Hayley Coles, deputy leader and cabinet member for communities and culture at Staffordshire County Council, said:
"These recordings capture the voices, experiences and stories that have helped shape Staffordshire and the wider Midlands. They give us a unique insight into the lives of local people and communities, many of which may not be represented elsewhere in the historical records.
"We are delighted that Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Archive Service is part of this partnership which will help protect these invaluable recordings from being lost and ensure future generations can continue to learn from this important part of our heritage."
Over the next year, an initial 1,200 recordings will be digitised and preserved as part of the project along with a programme of events and learning activities to help residents discover the shared heritage of the Midlands.
Simon Dixon, associate director for community and heritage at the University of Leicester, said:
"Through the East Midlands Oral History Archive, the University of Leicester has been preserving sound archives for a quarter of a century.
"Building on recent projects, Unlocking Our Sound Heritage and Sounds for the Future, this funding has the potential to secure a major part of the sound heritage of the Midlands for future generations.
"Thank you to National Lottery players for making this work possible."
