Organisational overview

The National Archives was established under the Archives Act 1983. The Archives is a budget-funded executive agency within the Communications, Information Technology and the Arts portfolio. In 2001 the Archives became an executive agency under section 65 of the Public Service Act 1999.

Role and functions

The Archives maintains the records created by Australian Government agencies that form the archival resources of the nation.

The Archives therefore contributes to the maintenance and understanding of political, social and cultural values in Australia by:

promoting the role of records as evidence in supporting the rule of law;
supporting the effectiveness and accountability of government administration; and
preserving and providing access to documentation of the interaction between the Australian people and their government.

The Archives’ responsibilities are to:

play the leading role in the management of Commonwealth records;
make available to the public Commonwealth records more than 30 years old, with certain exemptions;
encourage and facilitate the use of the archival resources of the Australian Government; and
provide leadership in developing and coordinating the preservation and use of the archival resources of Australia.

Organisational structure

The Archives has offices in Canberra, all state capitals and Darwin. A list of addresses and contacts is at Appendix A.

Figure 1 – National Archives of Australia organisation chart

National Archives of Australia organisation chart

The head of the executive agency is the Director-General, a position established under the Archives Act 1983. The position of Deputy Director-General was created in 2004. The Director-General, Deputy Director-General and three Assistant Directors-General form the Executive, which is responsible for the overall management of the Archives. The Deputy and Assistants are each responsible for a branch of the Archives.

A Director heads each office of the Archives outside Canberra. Each is responsible for the effective management of the Archives and the implementation of national work programs at state and territory level. An organisation chart for the Archives is shown at Figure 1.

National Archives of Australia Advisory Council

The National Archives of Australia Advisory Council, established under the Archives Act 1983, provides advice to the Minister for the Arts and Sport and the Director-General of the Archives on matters relating to the functions of the Archives. The Minister or Director-General may refer matters to the Council for advice. The Council provides its own annual report to the Australian Parliament under the Archives Act. Its report for 2005–06 is included in this publication.

A governance chart for the Archives, current at 30 June 2006, is shown at Figure 2.

Figure 2 – National Archives of Australia governance chart

Senator the Hon. Rod Kemp, Minister for the Arts and Sport
Senator the Hon. Rod Kemp,
Minister for the Arts and Sport

Responsible Minister

The Minister for the Arts and Sport, Senator the Hon. Rod Kemp, is responsible for the Archives. Under the Archives Act 1983, the Minister may give directions not inconsistent with the Archives Act to the Director-General in relation to the exercise of his powers and the performance of his duties under the Archives Act.

Outcome and output structure

Outcome

A national archival collection, preserved and accessible for all Australians; the creation and management of Commonwealth records that support accountable government.

Output 1.1

Enable and promote best practice in the management of government records from the point of creation for as long as required to support the needs of government and the people.

Output 1.2

Develop, manage and promote a visible, known and accessible national collection that engages and informs the community; and foster appreciation of the role of archives in society.

A summary of resources for the Archives’ outcome is shown at Table 1 and average staffing levels at Table 2. During 2005–06, the Archives reviewed its outcome and outputs structure. From 2006–07, the Archives will report under two outcomes, which will give greater clarity to its objectives and performance indicators. See Table 3.

Table 1 – Summary of resources for the National Archives’ outcome

	Budget* 2005–06 $’000	Actual 2005–06 $’000	Variation**
Administered expenses (including third-party outputs)	0	0	0
Total administered expenses	0	0	0
Price of departmental outputs
Output 1.1 – Enable and promote best practice in the management of government records from the point of creation for as long as required to support the needs of government and the people.	36 687	30 662	-6 025
Output 1.2 – Develop, manage and promote a visible, known and accessible national collection that engages and informs the community; and foster appreciation of the role of archives in society.	37 366	45 993	8 627
Revenue from government (appropriation) for departmental outputs	67 356	67 356	0
Revenue from other sources	6 697	9 299	2 602
Total price of outputs	74 053	76 655	2 602
Total for outcome (total price of outputs and administered expenses)	74 053	76 655	2 602

* Budget estimates as at 2005–06 Portfolio Supplementary Additional Estimates Statement.

** The overall variation of $2.6 million relates to the actual collection intake being higher than forecast.
The variations at output level relate to a changed budget estimate calculation methodology at Additional Estimates. Actual expenditure is consistent with 2004–05 levels.

Table 2 – Average staffing level for the financial year

	2005–06	2006–07
Average staffing level (FTE)	447	416

Table 3 – Summary of resources for the National Archives’ new outcomes

	Budget 2006–07 $’000
Outcome 1 Commonwealth institutions have access to recordkeeping products and services that enable them to account for their actions and decisions through full, authentic and reliable records.
Output 1.1 Recordkeeping products and services	7 477
Revenue from government (appropriation) for departmental outputs	6 952
Revenue from other sources	525
Total price of outputs	7 477
Total for Outcome 1 (total price of outputs and administered expenses)	7 477
Outcome 2 Australians have access to a national archival collection that assists them to understand their heritage and democracy.
Output 2.1 A preserved, and developing, national archival collection	48 291
Output 2.2 An accessible, and interpreted, national archival collection	33 491
Revenue from government (appropriation) for departmental outputs	22 255
Revenue from other sources	59 527
Total price of outputs	81 782
Total for Outcome 2 (total price of outputs and administered expenses)	81 782

Financial overview

Operating result

The Archives reported a net surplus of $6.345 million from ordinary activities in 2005–06, compared with a net surplus of $2.659 million in 2004–05.

Conservation scientist Alana Lee undertaking materials analysis.

Revenue

Revenue increased by approximately 7 per cent compared to 2004–05. This increase primarily related to the collection intake received from other Australian Government
agencies.

Expenses

Expenses increased by 1.75 per cent from 2004–05 to 2005–06. Assets with a net book value of $3.536 million were identified as impaired or written-off in 2005–06.

Assets and liabilities

Assets increased by 0.5 per cent in 2005–06 primarily due to:

an increase in appropriation receivable; and
a significant intake of iconic collection items.

There was a minor increase in employee provisions during the period, and a decrease in supplier payables.