The history of RECORD goes back a long way to the time when specific members of the Lancashire and Cheshire Entomological Society (LCES) made moves to try to develop a centre for the deposition of, mainly entomological records, with the World Museum, Liverpool (Liverpool Museum). The Museum already had a paper-based Field-Data Bank but this move was an attempt to produce a computerised system and at the time it was unsure who would be running it. Sadly it fell through due to loss of momentum as we waited for JNCC’s lawyers to look at the problem (Nationally) of Data Ownership.

Following that attempt, Steve McWilliam, then Hon. Secretary for the LCES, made a move to collate as much entomological data from other naturalists as he could in his spare time but was quickly swamped by the amount of data received and the effort involved. This led to an approach to Cheshire Wildlife Trust, who at the time seemed the logical position for a Local Record Centre (LRC) if a Museum was going to be unable to provide the necessary resources (Museums were all going through difficult times in the late 1990s).

National Biodiversity Network

At around this time the Wildlife Trusts, as a national body, was also beginning to look at the possibility of developing a country-wide network of LRCs to prevent loss of people’s data and also to ensure that decisions over the environment and regarding planning issues were based upon accurate ecological information rather than having to rely on snap-shot surveys undertaken at the worst possible times of the year. This initiative became the National Biodiversity Network (see the NBN website over at: www.nbn.org.uk).

The NBN wished to trial their project and asked for applications from areas wishing to develop Local Record Centres; the aim being to trial/pilot one centre in England, one in Wales and one in Scotland. Northern Ireland was already very well served by a long running LRC called: CEDaR.

Cheshire, via Steve McWilliam, applied to the NBN and won the right to be the Pilot Local Record Centre for England under the NBN project. This meant Cheshire had a Project Officer, Liz Halliwell, (employed by the Wildlife Trusts UK Office) for 18 months (prior to October 2000) to lay the ground rules and bring on board many of the members of the current RECORD Steering Group.

In October 2000 our first Manager (Steve J. McWilliam) took up post and the centre began to evolve. Over the ensuing months relationships with data suppliers and data users began to develop. There is still a great need to secure future funding to enable the Centre to have the necessary time to achieve its objectives and to make itself an important part of the Cheshire region’s culture. Please do help if you can - any ideas for funding, no matter how small/trivial, will be gratefully received!

Launch of RECORD

In April 2001 RECORD moved into temporary office space at Halton Borough Council Offices in Picow Farm Road, Runcorn due to the closure of Chester Zoo because of the Foot and Mouth epidemic. The organisation moved into permanent accommodation at Chester Zoo in October 2001 in the old Estates Division portakabin by the Otter enclosure.

RECORD was launched into full operation on the 12th July 2002 with an event held in the Chester Zoo Lecture Theatre and opened by Sir Martin Doughty of English Nature. The organisation secured improved housing in Oakfield House, above the restaurant, at the Zoo in 2006. 

Steve McWilliam resigned as Manager of RECORD at the end of May 2007 due to health reasons. Eric Fletcher was promoted into the managerial post in June 2007. RECORD has now been fully operational for several years. It has a mix of permanent staff, contractors and volunteers. Besides its data keying and verification duties, it also carries out surveys and researches historical data. In 2013 RECORD moved to its new premises next to Chester zoo's main adninistration centre, Cedar House.

Should you wish to contact us please ring on: 01244 383749. The postal address is: RECORD, Cedar House, Chester Zoological Gardens, Upton, Chester, Cheshire, CH2 1LH.

Local Record Centres

LRCs are not-for-profit partnership organisations that deliver services and information to a wide range of organisations and individuals for the public benefit. LRCs are not led by any single organisation and do not exist to give priority to the needs of any single organisation. It is widely agreed that the ongoing running costs of LRCs should be substantially met by local partnerships. Local Authorities and statutory agencies are invariably key components of such local partnerships but they also include non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as the Wildlife Trusts and private sector representatives. Whilst it is reasonable to expect local partnerships to fund ongoing running costs, injection of external funding is usually essential to achieve establishment of new LRCs. During the establishment period of a new LRC, typically three years, the LRC is not delivering services to local partners but building systems and relationships with data providers and users, and capturing the highest priority data sets.