1301.0 - Year Book Australia, 2008
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 07/02/2008
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HERITAGE The primary function of archives is the permanent preservation of records which are unique because of their administrative, financial, legal, research, cultural or other information value. The records are generally no longer required for the conduct of current activities by government agencies, non-government organisations or individuals. The National Archives of Australia promotes reliable record keeping and maintains a visible and accessible archival collection on behalf of the Australian Government. The Archives of Australia website provides information about archives in Australia and operates as a portal to the websites of other Australian archival institutions. These include the Australian War Memorial, the National Film and Sound Archive, state and territory government archives, and archives established by churches, business corporations, universities and city councils. At the end of June 2004, there were eight national and state archive organisations with 21 locations employing 811 persons assisted by 122 volunteers (table 14.15).
Botanic gardens are scientific and cultural institutions established to collect, study, exchange and display plants for research and for the education and enjoyment of the public. Some have an associated herbarium, which is a scientific collection of dried preserved plant specimens used for research and the accurate classification and identification of plants and plant material. There are major botanic gardens in each capital city. Information about the botanic gardens and herbaria in Australia can be obtained from the websites of the Australian National Botanic Gardens, the Council of Heads of Australian Botanic Gardens, and the Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria. Zoological parks and aquariums (i.e. animal, fauna, bird and reptile parks, aquariums, aviaries, butterfly houses and dolphinariums) are primarily engaged in the breeding, preservation, study and display of native and/or exotic fauna in captivity, and are accessible to the general public. Some of the better known zoological parks and sanctuaries are Taronga Park (Sydney), Healesville Sanctuary (60 kilometres (km) from Melbourne), the Western Plains Zoo (Dubbo), Victoria's Open Range Zoo at Werribee (just outside Melbourne), The Territory Wildlife Park (Darwin), Monarto Zoological Park (70 km from Adelaide), Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (Brisbane) and Currumbin Sanctuary (Gold Coast). Information about Australian zoological parks and aquariums can be obtained from the 'Zoos in Australia' page on the Australian Government's Culture and Recreation Portal. Employment and other involvement The 2001 Census of Population and Housing provides information on the number and characteristics of people aged 15 years and over whose main job in the week prior to the Census was in a heritage occupation. People who had unpaid involvement in heritage activities - or who worked part time in heritage activities but had another job they regarded as their main job in the week prior to the Census - were not recorded in the Census as having heritage occupations. The 2001 Census found that, in August 2001, 32,492 people (0.4% of all employed persons) had their main job in a heritage occupation. Of this number, 75.0% were females. Table 14.16 shows the number of people who were recorded as having their main (paid) job in heritage occupations in the 2001 Census.
Heritage work is often intermittent, unpaid or not a person's main job. Therefore, in order to obtain a more complete picture of heritage work, the ABS conducted a household survey in 2004 to measure all involvement over a 12-month period. During the year ended April 2004, 335,500 people (2.1% of people aged 15 years and over) were involved in some form of paid or unpaid work relating to the heritage activities covered in the survey. The Australian Capital Territory recorded the highest involvement rate for work in heritage activities at 3.9% (table 14.17). The Australian Capital Territory also had the highest proportion of paid involvement, with 56.7% of those involved in heritage activities receiving some payment.
The survey found that in the year prior to April 2004, more people had paid involvement in libraries and archives (33,700) and national parks and reserves (27,700) than in the other heritage activities included in the survey. Of the 87,800 people involved in libraries and archives, 38.4% received some payment, while 25.3% of the 113,000 persons involved in national parks and reserves also received some payment. Government support In 2005-06 the Australian Government provided $472.2m in funding for heritage, while the state and territory governments contributed $2,142.1m in total (table 14.18). The contribution of local governments to heritage funding is not separately available, although it is known that they provided a total of $973.2m for heritage and the arts during 2005-06. It is also known that local governments provide considerable funding to public libraries. A survey of public libraries, conducted in respect of 2003-04, found the contribution of local governments to be $521.9m. Funding for heritage and the arts during 2005-06 totalled $1,878.4m from the Australian Government and $2,598.1m from state and territory governments. These figures correspond to the $973.2m provided by local governments. See the earlier Arts section for information regarding government funding of arts activities. Between 2003-04 and 2005-06, there was a net increase in the funding of heritage activities by both the Australian Government and the combined state and territory governments. Funding by the Australian Government increased by $31.9m (or 7.2%) over the two-year period, while the net increase in funding by state and territory governments was $188.0m (or 9.6%).
With funding of $199.6m and $134.1m respectively, museums (other than art museums) and libraries and archives accounted for 70.7% of heritage funding by the Australian Government in 2005-06. However, much of the heritage funding provided by the state and territory governments was directed at nature parks and reserves. The $1,016.3m allocated in this way was 47.4% of the available total (table 14.19).
A survey of museums, conducted in respect of 2003-04, found that funding from all levels of government contributed $628.0m to the total income of museums. This amount included both current and capital funding, and funding for one-off projects. Art museums received $200.4m of the funding, and other museums the remaining $427.6m. Public libraries were also surveyed in respect of 2003-04. The survey found that libraries and archives received a total of $879.2m from all levels of government. Of this amount, $521.9m went to local government libraries, $259.4m to national and state libraries, and $97.9m to national and state archives. These amounts excluded capital funding. Experiencing heritage The ABS periodically conducts a survey of households in which it collects data on several environmental topics, including visits to World Heritage Areas, national and state parks. The most recent survey found that people aged 25-34 years or 35-44 years were the most likely to have visited these areas and parks in the 12 months prior to March 2004. During that period, for both age groups, just over 60% of people visited one of these areas compared with 52% for the adult population as a whole. Graph 14.20 shows visit rates have tended to decline between 1992 and 2004 within each age group. The age group contributing most to the overall fall in the visit rate was the 18-24 year olds. Their visit rate declined from 69% for the 1992 survey to 51% for 2004. Of those people who had not visited a World Heritage Area, national or state park in the 12 months prior to March 2004, 36% cited lack of time as the main reason for this (graph 14.21). Lack of time was the most common main reason for not visiting for all age groups except people aged 65 years and over, for whom age or health conditions was the most common main reason. Inability to visit because of age or health conditions was the second most common main reason for not visiting (17% overall, and 53% for people aged 65 years and over). A household survey conducted in respect of 2005-06 found that 35.6% of the population aged 15 years and over (5.7 million people) visited a zoological park or aquarium, and 33.7% (5.4 million) visited a botanic garden, at least once during the 12 months prior to interview (table 14.22). For art galleries, the attendance rate was 22.7% (3.6 million people), while for museums (other than art galleries) it was 22.6% (3.6 million). Libraries were visited at least once by 34.1% of people aged 15 years and over (5.5 million people).Persons born overseas in the main English-speaking countries had the highest attendance rate at each of these types of institution. The age group with the highest 2005-06 attendance rates for botanic gardens and for zoological parks and aquariums was 25-34 year olds (37.6% and 46.5% respectively), while for museums it was 35-44 year olds (27.2%) and for libraries 15-24 year olds (37.4%). For art galleries, 45-54 year olds had the highest attendance rate (26.6%).
A survey of public libraries and archives in respect of 2003-04 found that there were 104.7 mill. visits to libraries during that year - an average of just over five visits per person. Local government libraries accounted for 95% of all visits. There were also 137,000 visits to the search rooms of the national and state archive organisations during 2003-04, and 218,000 recorded archival enquiries.It is important to note the difference between a 'visitor' and a 'visit'. The 2005-06 household survey mentioned above counted each visitor only once, regardless of how many times they visited a library. However, the survey of public libraries and archives recorded the total number of visits, so that each visitor was counted every time they visited a library. In April 2006 the ABS conducted a survey of children's participation in cultural and leisure activities. For the first time, this survey collected information about children's attendance at cultural venues. Almost two-thirds (65.8%) of children aged 5-14 years (1.8 million children) had attended a public library, museum or art gallery outside school hours in the previous 12 months. Public libraries were visited by 55.1% of children, which was substantially more than the 37.3% who visited museums or art galleries (table 14.23). Regular surveys of household expenditure are conducted by the ABS, most recently in respect of 2003-04. Findings from this survey showed households spent, on average, $0.39 per week on heritage activities - $0.15 on art gallery and museum fees and charges and $0.24 on national park and zoo fees and charges. This results in total annual expenditure on heritage activities by all households of $157.3m, which is less than 0.1% of the total annual household expenditure on all products. However, it should be noted that general entry to many art galleries and museums is free, with fees only being charged for special exhibitions.
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