What You Can Expect From Me

Where the work involves the preparation of a report on a family, individual or a record in an archive and whether a client is a professional client, group or an individual, they can expect to receive as a minimum:-

• A costs estimate and regular updates
• A statement of the aim and purpose of the research
• A report, initially in PDF format detailing sources researched and their repositories and references
• Details of any constraints placed upon the reserach by virtue of a costs limit
• Suggestions and advice on the feasibility of further research and likely available original sources, trancriptions and indexes with an assessment on their reliability.
• Answers where possible to any specific questions raised by the client or where no answer can be given the reason.
• Where it is recommended that an expert become involved the reason. For example some mediaeval documents require paleographical skills outside my expertise.
• If professional printing and binding is required the costs involved 

Family History is of course very much more than knowing a few basic details about our ancestors and their families although finding these facts is the first step in all family research. Having commissioned a basic report  clients may wish to consider whether that might not be converted into something  more substantial. 

The Report on the Ancestry of Roland Higgins, linked below involved, in addition to the compilation of the basic report:- 

• The purchase of some further certificates at a cost of £39.80
• A visit to an archive to study the post mortem examination report on George Higgins two hours £40
• Addition of  family memories and photographs
• Adding to the tree and a rewriting of the report one and one half hours £30.

For an additional sum of just under £110 a basic report became a family history..

All  research work outside the scope of the Fixed Fee Report, which might include searching in an archive, preparing a report, visiting a cemetery or other place relevant to a family history is charged at twenty pounds sterling (£20) an hour for each hour spent. Time of part of an hour is charged in units of six minutes.



Out of pocket payments which might be 

• A fee paid for a copy grant of probate and will at present £6.
• Payment for a photography permit made to an archive, variable.
• A payment paid to the National Archives to download a will proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury before 1858, usually £3.50. Fees for other documents and wills vary.
• Travel to photograph a site or grave £10 an hour or to travel to an archive outside Lancashire Cheshire Greater Manchester or West Yorkshire.
• Fee payable for a copy document from an archive where that would be cheaper than to visit the archive to obtain an abstract following inspection.
• Any fee payable to a third party for example another genealogist with a particular expertise.
• Any fee payable to download a document from a website
• Where Scottish reserach is involved a fee based on the pay per view charges levied by Scotland's People website to view scans of original documents. 
• Printing and presentation costs.
• Postages.

There are four reports linked below.

One is a report on the ancestry of my father prepared after having completed research for a basic report and then accessing further resources.

One is a report on an interesting will of my great uncle, demonstrating how a will might give additional family information outside the census and BMD records. Though the will maker and several of the beneficiaries are my relatives I never knew any of them so that I was able to approach the task with professional detachment.

The third is a report detailing the death in WW1 of another great uncle, Francis Higgins, in circumstances where his military records have not survived. The investigation involved a visit to a military archive and the consultation of a War Diary as well as a consideration of census records and a Family Bible.

In the section One of My Ancestors is a link to the autobiography of my grandmother, another person I never knew and who was rarely discussed at home.

Some of your ancestors are likely to have had  interesting stories to tell which can be researched by me in the same way as I have researched stories about my own ancestors and the ancestors of my clients.

I would be delighted to assist you in finding out about your ancestors

and look forward to hearing from you.