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You can use this page to find the course you are looking for. You can search by type of course, courses from a particular tutor, difficulty level and start date, or search using your own keywords. Want to know about what the different types of course are? Visit the Types of Course page. Want help choosing? Visit Choosing your first course.
You can use this page to find the course you are looking for. You can search by type of course, courses from a particular tutor, difficulty level and start date, or search using your own keywords. Want to know about what the different types of course are? Visit the Types of Course page. Want help choosing? Visit Choosing your first course.
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Climbing Trees - Inspiring children with family history
This course provides lots of practical activities, ideas, and guidance for sharing your genealogy knowledge and enthusiasm with your children and grandchildren (aimed at those between the ages of 7 and 11).
- Join anytime
Foundations of Family History Part 1: Getting Started
Part one of a two-part introduction to genealogy research in England and Wales. The course provides you with the tools to get started with confidence, focusing on the use of civil registration and census records to get things right from the start.
- Join anytime
Foundations of Family History Part 2: Next Steps
Second part of a two-part introduction to genealogy research in England and Wales, building on knowledge and skills from part one, using parish registers and probate records to further research into the family tree and developing problem solving skills.
- Join anytime
Mastering Census Records for Family and Local History
The census records are one of the most fundamental sources for family history research. This course looks at how to get most from these records for England and Wales: search strategies, finding 'missing' ancestors and integration with complementary sources.
- Join anytime
My British Isles Origins - Crossing the Pond
This course will help you trace ancestors who arrived in the United States from the British Isles, focusing on the period 1600 to 1830. It starts in the US with sources most likely to offer clues about origins and moves to records in the British Isles
- Join anytime
Parish Registers of England and Wales
Parish registers are fundamental to genealogy research before 1837 in England & Wales. This course gives you the confidence you need to find parish registers for your ancestors, understand the historical context and interpret your findings.
- Join anytime
Researching Ancestors in Continental Europe
Have you found ancestors that originated in Continental Europe? This course introduces you to the broad context of Europe, offers advice for tracking European ancestors, expands your knowledge and assists in problem solving.
- Tutor: Julie Goucher
- Coming soon
Unlocking Heraldry for Family Historians
Have you ever wondered whether your family is entitled to bear a coat of arms? This course will help you unlock the language of heraldry, including terminology, identifying a coat of arms, inheritance of arms and key resources.
- Tutor: Richard Baker
- Coming soon
Advanced Programme Year Two Project Module
This part of Year Two of the Advanced Certificate programme covers the activities associated with the final year project, outside the set courses. The Year Two assessment takes the form of a research project, which includes research in original documents in the period 1540-1837.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings, Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 54 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
Building on a Solid Foundation - Genealogy methods and techniques
This genealogy methods and techniques course will build confidence in your family tree, with a walk through technique, research notes and useful research tools, such as research logs, timelines, source analysis and building a weight of evidence.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
First Steps to a One-Place Study
One-place studies are a fascinating blend of local and family history. This course enables you to begin or develop your one-place study, suggesting methods, sources and techniques that will enhance your understanding of a community and its people.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
Old Handwriting for Family Historians
Old handwriting or palaeography often presents difficulties for family historians. This course takes a practical approach to reading and transcribing old handwriting, focusing on Secretary Hand, a commonly used form during the 16th and 17th centuries.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Organizing Your Genealogy
As you research your family history, you collect information, charts, copies of records, notes, lists of sources searched, etc. This online course is designed to help you get organized, stay organized and be ready for more research online and on location.
- Tutor: Barbara Baker
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 4 weeks (3 lessons)
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
Scotland 1750-1850 - Beyond the Old Parish Registers
This course in Scottish family history progresses research back before 1850, discussing sources that fill the gap when the OPRs are uninformative or missing, e.g. records of parish and town administration, occupations, land transfer and taxation.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
Victorian Crime and Punishment - Courts, police and prisons
This course guides you through the best research methods, online and in archives, for researching criminal ancestors. With a special focus on court records other records, such as juries, witnesses, the police and prisons are also considered.
- Tutor: Richard Holt
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
Using Social Media for Family History
Did you know that social media can help with your research? This course will show you the benefits, whether as a way of keeping on top of the latest news, collaborating and communicating with others, or using social media for formal ways of sharing your research.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Length: 3 weeks
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
Wills and Administrations; the riches of probate records
Wills are often overlooked as a source of family history information but they can reveal family relationships and provide insight into social status. This course takes you through the various probate documents available before and after 1858.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Understanding Archives - Getting the Most From Your Research
Visiting an archive for the first time can be a daunting experience. In this course you will learn about the record-keeping framework in England and Wales, where to find national, local and specialist collections, and how to plan your research day in the archives to make the best use of your time.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 15 Sep 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 15 Sep 2026
- Start: 14 Sep 2027
Advanced DNA Strategies with Autosomal DNA
Do you want to take working with your DNA matches to the next level? This course considers a host of DNA tools, techniques and strategies to help you get the most from your autosomal DNA matches, for those that have been working with DNA for a while.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
In Sickness and in Death - researching the ill-health and death of your ancestors
Our ancestors’ deaths are an integral part of our family’s history. This course sets your ancestors’ lives in context by looking at the illnesses, disabilities and diseases that brought about their deaths or had an effect on their well-being.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
Researching Irish Land Records
This course considers land research in Ireland from the 17th century to present day, and how to use this in your genealogy research. It includes various forms of land tenure, records of ownership and rental, valuation and conveyance of property, maps and more.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Start: 26 Apr 2027
Manorial Records for Family and Local Historians
The manorial system was a framework for life in England and Wales for hundreds of years. This course examines the place of the manor in the legal and social system, the records created by the manor, and changes that occurred through the centuries.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Start: 18 Oct 2027
Progressing Your Local History Research
Our more advanced local history course focuses on the medieval and early modern periods. It develops research skills, brings in the context of physical environment to the study of a place and looks at analysis and sharing of research.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
17th Century Sources
For genealogists the 17th century presents new challenges. This course will provide students with an understanding of the problems likely to be encountered in this period, record interpretation, analysis and planning and how to find documents.
- Tutor: Stuart Raymond
- Start: 21 Oct 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 21 Oct 2026
- Start: 12 Jan 2027
- Start: 26 Oct 2027
Introduction to House History
This course will take you step by step through the main documentary records available for house histories, and where to find them, and will use case studies to show how the records can be used together to discover the history of a house.
- Tutor: Cathy Soughton
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
Professional Genealogist - Become one, become a better one
Do you have ambition to become a professional genealogist? Have you already started taking on clients but are looking for guidance? This course guides you through the steps and professional skills that form the foundation for success.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
Your Military Ancestors
Most of us with British or Irish roots can find a soldier or sailor on their family tree. Military records are some of the most used by genealogists. This course guides you through sources at The National Archives, local archives and military museums.
- Tutor: Simon Fowler
- Start: 2 Nov 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 2 Nov 2026
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Start: 8 Nov 2027
Nonconformity - Its Records and History 1600 - 1950
This course looks at the history of nonconformity from 1600 to 1950, the records created, major denominations in the 18th and 19th centuries such as Methodists and Congregationalists, and the ways in which faith affected the lives of nonconformists.
- Tutor: Alec Tritton
- Start: 5 Nov 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 5 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Apr 2027
- Start: 4 Nov 2027
Education and Childhood 1820 to 1920
This course explores the development of education during the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Beginning with an exploration of the influences on childhood experience, we move onto education records from elementary school age through to university.
- Tutor: Linda Newey
- Start: 9 Nov 2026
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 9 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
Discovering Your British Family and Local Community in the early 20th Century
Family historians often neglect the twentieth century but there is plenty to be discovered. This course considers sources and research methods to investigate more recent family members in the context of their community and their time.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 16 Nov 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 16 Nov 2026
Researching Scottish Ancestral Crisis
Many of our Scottish ancestors had to overcome great adversity - illness, death, bigamy, abandonment, accidents, eviction, victimhood, ethnic cleansing. This course will explore the many areas of hardship and how to access the relevant records.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 16 Nov 2026
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 16 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
Digging Deeper: Mastering Online Genealogy Research
Researching online has become so easy that we often forget to challenge whether we are getting the most from our searches. This course aims to improve your search skills, so that you can be more confident with your search results.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
Scottish Research Online
This course describes the major sites and record types that you will encounter in your Scottish family history research, and how to analyse the results. It will inspire you to pursue your interest in Scottish genealogy and take it to the next level.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
- Start: 28 Jun 2027
Understanding Title Deeds
Title deeds can be a real bonus for family and local historians, including information not found anywhere else. This course introduces the records in a practical way, enabling students to find, understand and interpret the different types of deeds.
- Tutor: Cathy Soughton
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
Apprenticeship Records
Apprenticeship, both as a private arrangement and under the Poor Laws, generated records which can provide invaluable information for tracing family history. This course will guide you through apprenticeship records and explain how to find them.
- Tutor: Richard Holt
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
Employment Records
Many documents indicate occupations in which our ancestors were employed. This course examines what is likely to be found in official and unofficial sources and how information can be used to provide further insights into the lives of our ancestors.
- Tutor: Alec Tritton
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Start: 17 Jun 2027
Building on a Solid Foundation - Genealogy methods and techniques
This genealogy methods and techniques course will build confidence in your family tree, with a walk through technique, research notes and useful research tools, such as research logs, timelines, source analysis and building a weight of evidence.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Discovering More About Your Agricultural Labouring Ancestors
This online course helps to set ag labs in a broader context and suggests sources that will reveal more about the lives of those rural ancestors and the farms on which they worked. The focus is on British farming from 1700-1950.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
17th Century Sources
For genealogists the 17th century presents new challenges. This course will provide students with an understanding of the problems likely to be encountered in this period, record interpretation, analysis and planning and how to find documents.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 12 Jan 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 21 Oct 2026
- Start: 12 Jan 2027
- Start: 26 Oct 2027
Introduction to One-Name Studies
A one-name study is an exciting journey into your surname's past. This introduction to one-name studies, written in association with the Guild of One-Name Studies, includes the history of surnames, what a one-name study is, and how to get started.
- Tutor: Julie Goucher
- Start: 18 Jan 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 18 Jan 2027
Researching Your Yorkshire Ancestors
The course provides an overview of the history and diversity of Yorkshire, its people and its boundary changes, giving students an understanding of Yorkshire communities through time and where to locate records.
- Tutor: Jude Rhodes
- Start: 1 Feb 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 1 Feb 2027
Progressing Your Irish Research Online
This course describes the many state-created records and church records that can be used to research your Irish ancestry. It will provide an understanding of why records were created, where to find them online and how to use them effectively.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 8 Feb 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 8 Feb 2027
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
Church and Community, Selected records 1540 - 1800
This course gives you the tools to understand the nature, jurisdictions and administrations under which different types of community existed in the past, and seeks to bring genealogy and local history closer together.
- Tutor: Emma Jolly
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
Victorian Crime and Punishment - Courts, police and prisons
This course guides you through the best research methods, online and in archives, for researching criminal ancestors. With a special focus on court records other records, such as juries, witnesses, the police and prisons are also considered.
- Tutor: Richard Holt
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
Introduction to Medieval Genealogy
This course provides an overview of medieval genealogy, concentrating on the most accessible sources, giving contextual background to medieval society and the nature of medieval records; how they were put together, and their limitations.
- Tutor: Rhiannon Lloyd
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
Wills and Administrations; the riches of probate records
Wills are often overlooked as a source of family history information but they can reveal family relationships and provide insight into social status. This course takes you through the various probate documents available before and after 1858.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Before the Modern Census - Name-rich sources from 1690 To 1837
This course considers the name-rich family history records to consult when researching in the period before the national census records of name, age, birthplace and household address.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 16 Mar 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 16 Mar 2027
- Start: 20 Jul 2027
Elusive Ancestors: Migration within the British Isles
Family historians often encounter elusive family members who appear as if from nowhere or disappear without trace. This course introduces you to migration theories and provides strategies to help track down ancestors who moved within the British Isles.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
Scotland 1750-1850 - Beyond the Old Parish Registers
This course in Scottish family history progresses research back before 1850, discussing sources that fill the gap when the OPRs are uninformative or missing, e.g. records of parish and town administration, occupations, land transfer and taxation.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
Getting the most from The National Archives (TNA) Website
The National Archives' website and catalogues describe more than 20 million documents, and can lead you to much information about your ancestors. This course covers how to find the most genealogically valuable records and how to search for individuals.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 30 Mar 2027
- Length: 3 weeks
- Start: 30 Mar 2027
Getting Started with Local History
This course, developed with the British Association for Local History, introduces local history and provides knowledge and skills to enable students to get started on a local history project from the Industrial Revolution to the present day.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 5 Apr 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 5 Apr 2027
Advanced Methods and Reports
This course is suitable for both amateur and professional genealogists. It provides advanced techniques and tools to ensure the best possible evidence for your family tree, and covers preparation of charts and genealogy research reports to the highest standard.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 12 Apr 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 12 Apr 2027
Nonconformity - Its Records and History 1600 - 1950
This course looks at the history of nonconformity from 1600 to 1950, the records created, major denominations in the 18th and 19th centuries such as Methodists and Congregationalists, and the ways in which faith affected the lives of nonconformists.
- Tutor: Alec Tritton
- Start: 15 Apr 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 5 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Apr 2027
- Start: 4 Nov 2027
Practicalities of a One-Name Study
The course is designed to enable students to explore the practical steps of maintaining and developing their one-name study through a variety of media and to give some context to the various considerations they will need to explore.
- Tutor: Julie Goucher
- Start: 19 Apr 2027
- Length: 5 weeks (4 lessons)
- Start: 19 Apr 2027
Researching the Poor: A Practical Guide to Parish and Workhouse Archives
Records of the poor are invaluable to family historians, naming both those who received assistance and those who paid rates and made the system work. This course explains how poor relief evolved, functioned and the records that were created as a result.
- Tutor: Julie Muirhead
- Start: 19 Apr 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 19 Apr 2027
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
Chancery Court Records for Family and Local History
Chancery court records are some of the most underused records available to the family or local historian. This course provides students with an understanding of how to get the most from the records and an insight into secret lives and family feuds.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 26 Apr 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 26 Apr 2027
Researching Irish Land Records
This course considers land research in Ireland from the 17th century to present day, and how to use this in your genealogy research. It includes various forms of land tenure, records of ownership and rental, valuation and conveyance of property, maps and more.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 26 Apr 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Start: 26 Apr 2027
Putting Your Female Ancestors into Context
Tracing your female ancestors can be more challenging than researching the male lines. This course enables you to tell the stories of the women on your family tree, setting their lives against the backdrop of the social historical context of their times.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 10 May 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 10 May 2027
Advanced Programme Year One Assessment
The end of year one assessment course is a practical module, assessing students' ability to pass from year one to year two of the Advanced Certificate programme.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 1 Jun 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 1 Jun 2027
Apprenticeship Records
Apprenticeship, both as a private arrangement and under the Poor Laws, generated records which can provide invaluable information for tracing family history. This course will guide you through apprenticeship records and explain how to find them.
- Tutor: Richard Holt
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
Demystifying DNA for Family Historians
This online genetic genealogy course provides an introduction to DNA testing for family historians, making sense of the tests and tools available and describing the uses of genetic genealogy alongside traditional family history research.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
Researching Your Welsh Ancestors
This course considers how Welsh research differs from English research from a social, linguistic, cultural and religious perspective and where to locate and how to get the most out of specific Welsh sources and repositories.
- Tutor: Eilir Daniels
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
So You Think You Know FamilySearch - A Guided Tour
There is so much more to the FamilySearch website than simple searches. Discover what you don't know in this online course, which will guide you through the website, offer tips about searching data, browsing and using the help sections.
- Tutor: Barbara Baker
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
Your Military Ancestors
Most of us with British or Irish roots can find a soldier or sailor on their family tree. Military records are some of the most used by genealogists. This course guides you through sources at The National Archives, local archives and military museums.
- Tutor: Jane Hough
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 2 Nov 2026
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Start: 8 Nov 2027
Employment Records
Many documents indicate occupations in which our ancestors were employed. This course examines what is likely to be found in official and unofficial sources and how information can be used to provide further insights into the lives of our ancestors.
- Tutor: Alec Tritton
- Start: 17 Jun 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Jan 2027
- Start: 17 Jun 2027
Are You Sitting Comfortably? Writing and Telling Your Family History
Writing your family history is the logical step after genealogical research. This course begins with decisions about what to write about, and what to include, and goes on to discovering historical context, social history and framing your story.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 28 Jun 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 28 Jun 2027
Scottish Research Online
This course describes the major sites and record types that you will encounter in your Scottish family history research, and how to analyse the results. It will inspire you to pursue your interest in Scottish genealogy and take it to the next level.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 28 Jun 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 4 Jan 2027
- Start: 28 Jun 2027
Before the Modern Census - Name-rich sources from 1690 To 1837
This course considers the name-rich family history records to consult when researching in the period before the national census records of name, age, birthplace and household address.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 20 Jul 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 16 Mar 2027
- Start: 20 Jul 2027
Progressing Your Irish Research Online
This course describes the many state-created records and church records that can be used to research your Irish ancestry. It will provide an understanding of why records were created, where to find them online and how to use them effectively.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 8 Feb 2027
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
Researching the Poor: A Practical Guide to Parish and Workhouse Archives
Records of the poor are invaluable to family historians, naming both those who received assistance and those who paid rates and made the system work. This course explains how poor relief evolved, functioned and the records that were created as a result.
- Tutor: Julie Muirhead
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 19 Apr 2027
- Start: 26 Jul 2027
Advanced One-Name Studies
Take one-name study skills to new levels with this advanced online course. The course includes the theory of one-name studies, a review of published work, introduces more complex interdisciplinary analysis and looks at publication of your work.
- Tutor: Julie Goucher
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Building on a Solid Foundation - Genealogy methods and techniques
This genealogy methods and techniques course will build confidence in your family tree, with a walk through technique, research notes and useful research tools, such as research logs, timelines, source analysis and building a weight of evidence.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 11 Jan 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Old Handwriting for Family Historians
Old handwriting or palaeography often presents difficulties for family historians. This course takes a practical approach to reading and transcribing old handwriting, focusing on Secretary Hand, a commonly used form during the 16th and 17th centuries.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Tracing Living Relatives
This course guides you through the main sources for locating people, how and where to access relevant records, how to prove straightforward family connections, outlines how to present your findings and gives advice on how best to approach potential beneficiaries.
- Tutor: Eilir Daniels
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Wills and Administrations; the riches of probate records
Wills are often overlooked as a source of family history information but they can reveal family relationships and provide insight into social status. This course takes you through the various probate documents available before and after 1858.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Start: 1 Mar 2027
- Start: 6 Sep 2027
Using Social Media for Family History
Did you know that social media can help with your research? This course will show you the benefits, whether as a way of keeping on top of the latest news, collaborating and communicating with others, or using social media for formal ways of sharing your research.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
- Length: 3 weeks
- Start: 14 Sep 2026
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
Victorian Crime and Punishment - Courts, police and prisons
This course guides you through the best research methods, online and in archives, for researching criminal ancestors. With a special focus on court records other records, such as juries, witnesses, the police and prisons are also considered.
- Tutor: Richard Holt
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Feb 2027
- Start: 13 Sep 2027
Understanding Archives - Getting the Most From Your Research
Visiting an archive for the first time can be a daunting experience. In this course you will learn about the record-keeping framework in England and Wales, where to find national, local and specialist collections, and how to plan your research day in the archives to make the best use of your time.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 14 Sep 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 15 Sep 2026
- Start: 14 Sep 2027
First Steps to a One-Place Study
One-place studies are a fascinating blend of local and family history. This course enables you to begin or develop your one-place study, suggesting methods, sources and techniques that will enhance your understanding of a community and its people.
- Tutor: Janet Few
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
Scotland 1750-1850 - Beyond the Old Parish Registers
This course in Scottish family history progresses research back before 1850, discussing sources that fill the gap when the OPRs are uninformative or missing, e.g. records of parish and town administration, occupations, land transfer and taxation.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 7 Sep 2026
- Start: 22 Mar 2027
- Start: 11 Oct 2027
Manorial Records for Family and Local Historians
The manorial system was a framework for life in England and Wales for hundreds of years. This course examines the place of the manor in the legal and social system, the records created by the manor, and changes that occurred through the centuries.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 18 Oct 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Start: 18 Oct 2027
Introduction to House History
This course will take you step by step through the main documentary records available for house histories, and where to find them, and will use case studies to show how the records can be used together to discover the history of a house.
- Tutor: Cathy Soughton
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
Progressing Your Local History Research
Our more advanced local history course focuses on the medieval and early modern periods. It develops research skills, brings in the context of physical environment to the study of a place and looks at analysis and sharing of research.
- Tutor: Joe Saunders
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 19 Oct 2026
- Start: 25 Oct 2027
17th Century Sources
For genealogists the 17th century presents new challenges. This course will provide students with an understanding of the problems likely to be encountered in this period, record interpretation, analysis and planning and how to find documents.
- Tutor: Else Churchill
- Start: 26 Oct 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 21 Oct 2026
- Start: 12 Jan 2027
- Start: 26 Oct 2027
Advanced DNA Strategies with Autosomal DNA
Do you want to take working with your DNA matches to the next level? This course considers a host of DNA tools, techniques and strategies to help you get the most from your autosomal DNA matches, for those that have been working with DNA for a while.
- Tutor: Karen Cummings
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 12 Oct 2026
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
Professional Genealogist - Become one, become a better one
Do you have ambition to become a professional genealogist? Have you already started taking on clients but are looking for guidance? This course guides you through the steps and professional skills that form the foundation for success.
- Tutor: Kelly Cornwell
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 26 Oct 2026
- Start: 1 Nov 2027
Nonconformity - Its Records and History 1600 - 1950
This course looks at the history of nonconformity from 1600 to 1950, the records created, major denominations in the 18th and 19th centuries such as Methodists and Congregationalists, and the ways in which faith affected the lives of nonconformists.
- Tutor: Alec Tritton
- Start: 4 Nov 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 5 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Apr 2027
- Start: 4 Nov 2027
Your Military Ancestors
Most of us with British or Irish roots can find a soldier or sailor on their family tree. Military records are some of the most used by genealogists. This course guides you through sources at The National Archives, local archives and military museums.
- Tutor: Jane Hough
- Start: 8 Nov 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 2 Nov 2026
- Start: 7 Jun 2027
- Start: 8 Nov 2027
Education and Childhood 1820 to 1920
This course explores the development of education during the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Beginning with an exploration of the influences on childhood experience, we move onto education records from elementary school age through to university.
- Tutor: Linda Newey
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
- Length: 4 weeks
- Start: 9 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
Researching Scottish Ancestral Crisis
Many of our Scottish ancestors had to overcome great adversity - illness, death, bigamy, abandonment, accidents, eviction, victimhood, ethnic cleansing. This course will explore the many areas of hardship and how to access the relevant records.
- Tutor: Chris Paton
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
- Length: 5 weeks
- Start: 16 Nov 2026
- Start: 15 Nov 2027
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