This page lists the key records you will find in the school collections. Please note that we may not hold these records for every school.
School Log Books
Log books are like a diary of the running of the school. They only occasionally refer to individual pupils but can give an idea of what was happening at the school and the wider community in general (e.g. inspection reports, severe weather, illness and epidemics, staff appointments and absences, etc.) The level of information in the book varies from one school to another. Some Head Teachers recorded events in detail whilst others wrote much less.
School Log Books are closed for a period of 50 years.
Admission Registers
These registers record new starts at the school. They usually include the child’s name; date of birth; date of admission; name of last school attended; date of leaving school; reason for leaving (and name of new school if applicable); name & address of parent/guardian.
For some schools, we have a full set from the beginning, for others the early registers are missing and for some schools we have none. All registers up to 1924 have been indexed and can be viewed online on the Friends of Dundee City Archives website.
These records are closed for 100 years. You can gain access to your own records or that of someone who is deceased. Please see our guidance on Information on Individual Pupils for more information.
Register of Lefts
This record is similar to the Admission Register but they record when and why a child left. Pupils are listed in order of date of leaving. The records may contain more information about school grades or class a child was in.
These registers are closed for a period of 100 years. You can gain access to your own records or that of someone who is deceased. Please see our guidance on Information on Individual Pupils for more information.
Pupil Record Cards
For most of the Secondary Schools we hold pupil record cards. The years they cover vary by each school, so please check the catalogue for the school you interested in. The information recorded also varies but usually includes Full Name, Address, Name of Parent/Guardian, Date of Birth, Date of Leaving, Reason for Leaving, Class at Leaving, Test results/yearly grades, Some comments on behaviour and character.
These records are closed for 100 years. You can gain access to your own records or that of someone who is deceased. Please see our guidance on Information on Individual Pupils for more information.
Generally, no further pupil records are retained by the Archives. Please contact us for more information.
Other Records
- School collections may also include:
- Management records (including headteachers files, reports, inspections and correspondence)
- Staff Records
- Photographs and videos (some photographs are available to view online on our Flickr page)
- Records relating to events, such as posters and programmes
- Publications, including school magazines, yearbooks, prospectuses and calendars
- Teaching plans, schemes of work and examples of pupil work
- Newscuttings
- Building Plans (these may be closed if the school still exists)
- Records relating to former pupils
- Small objects, such as medals, trophies, awards and teaching equipment
To see if these records survive for the school you are interested in, please see the catalogues.