It may be that a business can find no use for its historical records.

PLEASE DON'T THROW THEM AWAY!

They may hold great value for the people who worked in the business, the communities which it affected and for the history of the development of this industry. Please consider depositing such historical material with your local archive, library or museum - it is a very tangible way to give something back to the community. Local archives are publicly funded and aim to document the areas which they serve; this may well include the records of important local businesses. To find a local archive in your area you can consult The National Archives' directory for archives ARCHON.

Many archives will accept material either as a gift or on long term loan and will have standard agreements to cover such deposits. Some may even be able to offer services such as providing exhibitions or research. One such archive is Glasgow University Archives - find out more about their work here:

http://www.archives.gla.ac.uk/service/business/history/html

For more information on best practice in depositing archives consult the Managing Business Archives website section on Partnership and Collaboration.