Bunbury Catholic College: Preserving more than 50 years of school history through digitisation

The background

Bunbury Catholic College has built a rich history reflected in decades of school yearbooks. These yearbooks provide a lasting record of students, staff and school life and continue to be requested by former students, particularly when organising reunions.

While the College had preserved its historical yearbooks in physical form, many did not have electronic copies, creating an opportunity to better protect this history while making it easier for the wider school community to access.

Bunbury Catholic College had 23 years of yearbooks available only in physical form, with no electronic copies available.

The yearbooks were regularly requested by former students organising reunions, but accessing and sharing physical copies wasn’t always practical – particularly as many former students had moved away from the area for study or work.

The College also recognised the longer-term risk associated with relying solely on paper records. Physical documents can be misplaced or damaged and take up valuable storage space, while a digital archive could provide a permanent and more accessible record of the College’s history.

Building on an existing relationship with Grace and its local team, Bunbury Catholic College engaged Grace Information Management to digitise its collection of physical yearbooks.

The solution included:

  • Collection of the yearbooks directly from the College.
  • High-quality scanning and digitisation of 23 years of physical yearbooks.
  • Creation of permanent digital copies to protect the College’s historical information.
  • Return of the original yearbooks to the College following digitisation.
  • Digital files that could be made available through the College’s website for easier access by its community.

Grace’s local presence, responsiveness and existing relationship with the College helped make the process simple, with the team managing collection and return of the yearbooks directly from the school.

The project has helped Bunbury Catholic College build a complete digital archive of its yearbooks, preserving an important part of the school’s history while making it considerably easier to access.

Key outcomes include:

  • More than 50 years of yearbooks are now digitised.
  • Historical yearbooks can be accessed electronically rather than relying solely on physical copies.
  • Former students have easier access to yearbooks when reconnecting with the College or organising reunions.
  • Important historical records are protected by having a permanent digital copy.
  • Reduced reliance on physical records that can be lost, damaged or take up valuable space.

The project has reinforced the importance of digitisation as a way of protecting the College’s history while making it more accessible to current and former members of its community.

Bunbury Catholic College chose Grace because of its existing relationship with the team, local presence, efficiency and quality of work.

Throughout the project, Grace provided responsive support and managed the collection and return of the yearbooks directly from the school. The College particularly valued the convenience of the service and the quality of the completed scans.

“We had 23 years of yearbooks in physical form only, with no electronic copy. Yearbooks were frequently requested by ex-students organising reunions, and with many students moving away from home for study or work, it’s good to have an online permanent record. We now have a full digital record, with all 50+ years of yearbooks digitised. Grace was responsive, efficient and provided high-quality scans. I would 100% recommend them.”

Emily McKelvie, Business Manager, Bunbury Catholic College

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