The National Archives of Australia (NAA), formerly known as the Commonwealth Archives Office and Australian Archives, is an Australian Government agency that serves as the national archives of the nation. It collects, preserves and encourages access to important Commonwealth government records. Established under and governed by the Archives Act 1983, its main roles are "to collect and preserve Australia's most valuable government records and encourage their use by the public, and to promote good information management by Commonwealth government agencies, especially in meeting the challenges of the digital age". The NAA also develops exhibitions, publishes books and guides to the collection, and delivers educational programs. History After World War I the Commonwealth National Library (later National Library of Australia) was responsible for collecting Australian Government records. The library appointed its first archives officer in 1944. In March 1961 the Commonwealth Archives Office formally separated from the National Library of Australia and was renamed as the Australian Archives in 1975. In 1966, Peter Scott of the Commonwealth Archives Office developed the Australian Series System (aka Commonwealth Records Series System). This system represented a change in traditional archival theories of provenance, and it caters for changes of name and provides a flexible framework to arrange records across the different agencies which share the same organisational content. The Archives Act 1983 gave legislative protection to Commonwealth government records for the first time, with the Australian Archives responsible for their preservation. The agency was renamed the National Archives of Australia in February 1998. Function Under the Act, the National Archives has two main roles: to collect and preserve Australia's most valuable government records and encourage their use by the public to promote good information management by Commonwealth government agencies, especially in meeting the challenges of the digital age. Facilities The Archives' National Office is in Canberra. In 1998 the Canberra reading room, galleries and public areas of National Archives moved into a heritage-listed building known as "East Block" in the Parliamentary Triangle. The building, one of the national capital's original offices, was built in 1926 beside the Provisional Parliament House. Over the years East Block housed various government departments and served as Canberra's first post office and telephone exchange. On Friday, 9 June 2017 (International Archives Day), the National Archives of Australia officially opened the new, purpose-built National Archives Preservation Facility in Canberra, separate from the National Office which houses the reading room and