On Thursday 16 April 2026, the Royal Historical Society co-hosted the annual History and Practice conference. This year’s conference organised around the theme: ‘Shaping Societies, Improving Lives: the Impact of Archives and Historical Research.’
A partnership of The National Archives, Royal Historical Society, and the Institute of Historical Research, History and Archives in Practice (HAP) is where historians and archivists come together to consider shared interests in archive collections, their interpretation and use. Every other year we endeavour to partner with a UK archive or institution who similarly specialise in the bringing together of archivists and researchers. For History and Archives in Practice 2026, we partnered with the University of Sheffield Library and their Special Collections, Heritage and Archives team.
Archives are both shaped by and shape the communities and societies in which they exist and serve. For HAP26, we explored the relationship between collections, researchers, practice and locality to consider how archives have the potential to challenge the status quo and initiate change through collaboration and co-production.
Frith Hall, University of Sheffield
Hosted at the University of Sheffield’s Frith Hall, the vibrant conference saw historians, archivists, community organisers and postgraduate students gather to discuss ways that local archives and collections can bring historical research into active dialogue with communities. Panels addressed a wide range of themes including: ‘Navigating the Politics of/within the Archive’, ‘Working Together to Drive Change: From Collaboration to Co-production’ and ‘Participatory Approaches: Meaningful Engagement and Lived Experience.’ Some panels considered the ways that archives could contribute to present-day campaigns for social change and practices of civic engagement, others considered the ways that archive collections can be used to inform and improve learning resources for teachers and school-age learners.
RHS President Professor Lucy Noakes and RHS Councillor Dr Jesús Sanjurjo
In her closing remarks at the conference, RHS President Professor Lucy Noakes said:
“Our focus this year has been on the multiple ways that archives and historical practice more widely can shape and benefit wider society. It is a necessary focus at the moment as the work of historians, whether in universities like this, archives, and the wider community, feels undervalued and under threat, as resources are cut again and again, and while recent decades have delivered a welcome democratisation of history, we risk a future in which access to historical training and resources becomes, once again, the preserve of an elite.
This, as has been demonstrated again and again today, would be a mistake. Historical practice has the power to transform lives and shape societies. Collaborations between archivists, curators, community and third sector groups and academic historians support individual and collective wellbeing.”
We are grateful to our partners at the National Archives, the Institute of Historical Research and the University of Sheffield Library for the dedicated work undertaken to draw this conference together, and for their shared commitment to addressing these important themes. We also want to thank the many conference attendees who took part in and contributed to HAP26, and recognise the important work that is being undertaken to connect historical research, archives and communities across the UK.
We look forward to sharing news of History and Archives in Practice 2027 in due course, which is scheduled to take place in London at the Institute of Historical Research and Senate House.
‘Eh up Sheffield’ sign in the University of Sheffield Students’ Union
