guidelines for collection policies, bart de nil
TRANSCRIPT
Guidelines for collection policiesBart De Nil (FARO)Collection policies for medical heritage. An international comparisonAntwerp | 18.11.2016
Collection policies are derived from a collection plan, so what’s a collection plan?
insight
What a collection plan is not:
- stone tables
- stand alone
- 100 pages with which you can beat someone to death
• 5 Priorities for future collection policy
• 6 Co-operation
Strategy
• 2 Description of the collection
• 3 Current profile of the collection
• 4 Users en services
Status
• 1 Aim, context, scope
Aim
Six Easy Pieces
(1) Aim, context, scope collection plan• Context of the plan (internal and external environment analysis)
• Organization Context: existing plans? Eg. policy plan (city, state, organizing body ...)
• Policy context: Cultural Heritage Decree, other decrees (education), local policy frameworks, local policy frameworks?
• Environment context: social developments and trends• Objective (s) of the plan
• what do you want to achieve, change, for whom? • Do your own goals fit in the objective and mission of the bigger organization?
• Scope of the plan• Which collections (heritage scope), services ...?• Period (from / to) plan?• For who is the plan for? (Communication)
-> focus!
(2) Description of the collection• History • origin and positioning of the collection
• Description parts of the collection • material types (printed publications, archives, objects, AV-
material, ...), thematic ... (physical/digital/digital-born)• figures of size/growth of the collection• physical condition (condition, storage conditions)• status of the collection registration, digitization, digital access
• Assesing the significance of the collection (appraisal)• framework for appraisal of ‘heritage’ in development (e.g.
Significance 2.0)
(3) Description current collection profile
• Collection classification (current profile of the collection)• what are the ‘centers of gravity’ of the collections (core
collections)• gaps in the collection?
• Critical analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the collection development (selection policy)• adjustment of the selection and acquisition policy?• disposal of collections?
(4) Users and services • Who are the users?• user research
• What is the use of the (digital) collections?• Evolution (number) consultations, loans ...
• How is the service? (evaluation)• Valorisation of the (digital) collection• education, information, research, education, leisure,
health and wellbeing, ...• exhibitions, publications, social projects, outreach, ...
(5) Priorities collection policyFormulate on the basis of steps 1, 2, 3 and 4:• Priorities and targets for the future collection policy
• where we want to be x years and why? What has to change, etc.• The actions to achieve these targets
• Acquisition Policy (criteria (de-)selection, forms of acquisition ...)• Registration and digitization• Preservation, preventive conservation • Sustainable access (e.g. digital reading)• Development of the services• Valorisation
• Assessing the resources for these actions• personnel/finance/infrastructure
(6) Cooperation around collection policy• Positioning and cooperation• (International) networks, consultation platforms (ICOM,
IFLA, …)• (Cultural) partners (local, regional, international ...)• With whom to cooperate? For what actions? How?
• Collection policy coordination with other holders of medical collections• Agreements on acquisition, selection and collection
policy• Agreements on custody• Agreements on digitization, (born) digital collections
The process towards a collection plan is even more important than the plan in itself.
