Services at the Archives
Southampton Archives offers a range of professional services and expertise for which there are charges associated.
Research services
If you are unable to visit the archives in person, or would like some help finding a particular record, we offer a range of services to help with your research.
There is a charge of £20 per 30 minutes staff time, with a maximum of two hours time available to a single enquiry.
To use this service you will need to clearly explain the information that you need, including any relevant details or documents that might help when contacting us.
Merchant Seamen enquiries
We charge £20 to search the Central Index Register of Merchant Seamen, a collection of over a million merchant navy service record cards.
Baptism certificates
We can search for and produce a certified copy of a baptism entry for you. The cost of a certified copy is £20, excluding postage.
Certified copies of motor vehicle documents
We can search for motor vehicle registration documents if you provide the registration number. The distinguishing letters used by Southampton County Borough Council were OW, TR and CR. The cost of a certified copy is £20, excluding postage.
Copy charges
Copies can be made of many documents, depending on their physical condition and copyright regulations.
We will not photocopy or scan documents that are fragile and may be damaged by copying. This includes large items and books, these may only be copied by digital photography.
If you would like to photograph items using your own camera or phone, a daily photography permit can be purchased for £10. Photographs are for personal or research use only and may not be reproduced without permission. You will be asked not to use flash and in most cases be required to sign a copyright form.
Find more about our copyright guidelines.
The full list of our services and charges can be found in the table below:
| Item | Amount | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Local studies research costs | - | £20.00 per 30 minutes Two hours maximum |
| Photo licence per day or part thereof | Daily | £10.00 |
| TV/radio company visit and or filming | - | £175.00 per hour up to four hours £520.00 Per day £730 |
| TV/radio company visit and or filming - student | - | £90.00 per hour £270.00 per day |
| Archives research | - | £20.00 per 30 mins or part thereof Two hours maximum |
| Merchant seaman's enquiries | - | £20.00 |
| Baptism certificate certified | - | £20.00 |
| Certified copies of motor vehicle registration documents | - | £20.00 |
| Staff assisted black & white photocopies, Archives or scans | - | £1.00 |
| Staff assisted colour photocopies A4 | - | £2.00 |
| Staff assisted colour A3 | - | £2.00 |
| Printouts from microfiche (self service) | - | As copier costs in libraries |
| Postage UK | - | £2.50+ |
| Postage worldwide | - | £5.00+ |
| Digital image (per shot or scan) - customised | - | £3.50 |
| Still image used by TV company | Per image | £95.00 |
| Film | - | £116.00 |
| Commercial use of images in publications UK | Per image | £95.00 |
| Non-commercial/educational use of images in publications UK including web and social media | Per image | £16.00 |
| Commercial use of images in publications worldwide including websites and social media | Per image | £155.00 |
