You are in: Home › Research › Assisted searches › Assisted search service ›

Assisted Search Service - full description

Introduction

Thank you for considering our assisted search service. We aim to provide a quality service guiding you through the records held by the ScotlandsPeople Centre so that you get the most out of your two-hour session. To achieve this we need as much information as you can provide.

What follows will detail the service we will provide for you and the information we need from you to make the process as successful as it possibly can be.

What is an assisted search?

If you book an assisted search the following things will happen:

— You will be allocated a Family History Officer who will be responsible for carrying out the preliminary research and for sitting with you during the assisted search session.

— The Family history officer will sit with you for a maximum period of 2 hours.

— Assisted search periods are from 10:00-12:00 and 14:00–16:00.

— We will explain how to use the software and operate the computer terminal for you if required.

— We will explain how to print and save images and how to order extracts, if desired. See details of the associated charges below.

— During the session, we will inform you of your options with the search as it progresses.

— The length of time will depend on the amount of time that you have paid for and will also depend on results achieved. However, if we draw a blank with your own family tree, we can always show you how to find famous Scots. The minimum charge will be one hour, even if we can only fill part of the time with your own family tree.

— We will give you an A2 size unique ScotlandsPeople Centre family history chart for you to write in your results.

— We hope to make your assisted search an experience to remember. It would be extremely helpful if you could complete as much of the Assisted Search Form as you are able, and submit this form to us in advance.

— We will discuss proposals and requirements for the search with you through our pre-search questionnaire at the time of booking and also during the assisted search session.

— We will provide guidance on the facilities and resources available within the Centre and advise you on the records available. We have provided a list of all of the records available electronically at the Centre. Please note that this list excludes our wealth of reference library material.

— We will provide suggestions of further sources for research and direct you to other relevant organisations where necessary. For example we might refer you to the local Catholic archives, the National Archives of Scotland for additional genealogy material or the National Library of Scotland, etc.

— We will treat you with courtesy, respect and consideration.

You should be aware of the following:-

Before commencing any search we need you to provide sufficient information of an event from within the ScotlandsPeople records as a starting point, which is why we need you to complete as much information as possible in Part 2 of the Assisted Search Form.

You may use your own laptop during the session for retrieving or storing information, however, there will be no downloading of ScotlandsPeople information directly to your laptop. For a charge, you may download electronic versions of the images found on to a USB memory stick for £1 an image or you may have prints of the records for 50 pence for each black and white A4 image. Other size prints can also be purchased and we happily provide further details. It is possible to bring your own USB memory stick or you may purchase a 1 GB memory stick from the Centre. You may also order an Extract for £8 if you know the exact GROS reference number.

Please note that no guarantee can be given that we will be able to start or indeed complete your assisted search request. This may occur for a number of reasons:-

— If records are not available;

— If the information that you have provided is insufficient to progress the search;

— If records found during the search have insufficient information to progress the search;

— If there are a multitude of similar entries and it is difficult to ascertain whether the entry is your own family, and

— If events – such as births, marriages and deaths - occurred outwith Scotland (although in the case of wills and testaments it may still be possible to find an individual in the index regardless of whether or not the event occurred in Scotland).

If we discover from our preliminary research into your family tree that we will struggle to carry out any form of family history research then we will inform you and will cancel the search session and refund you if you have already paid.

Feedback

ScotlandsPeople welcomes any opportunity to improve services to our customers.

Please use the feedback forms to provide us with comments about your experience of the service.

If you are unhappy with any aspect of the service, you should whenever possible give your contact person an opportunity to explain and to put things right if necessary. If this does not lead to the complaint being resolved, you should then contact the Centre Manager by either telephoning 0131 314 4300 or by completing a contact form.