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Collections Care and Conservation Policy

Archives & Special Collections

Collections Care and ConservationPolicy

Contents

  1. Introduction

  1. Vision and Mission

  1. Policy Principles and Aims

  1. Context

  1. Staff and Resources

  1. Building, Security and Environment

  1. Disaster and Emergency Preparedness

  1. Access and use

  1. Copying and Surrogacy

  1. Remedial Conservation

  1. Exhibition and Loans for exhibition

Appendix A : Policies, guidelines and documents consulted

Document Control

File Name

Archives and Special Collections Collections Care and Conservation Policy

Original Author(s)

Archivist

Current Revision Author(s)

Archives and Special Collections Manager

Status

Approved by Collections and Cultural Affairs Task Group 19 December 2022.

Distribution

BU Digital Services

Authority

Archives and Special Collections

Version

Date

Author(s)

Notes on Revisions

0.1

March 2016

Archivist

Approved June 2016

0.2

September 2016

Archivist and Head of Archives and Special Collections

Mission statement revised to correspond with Archives and Special Collections Collection Policy for Archive Accreditation purposes

0.3

17 October 2016

Head of Archives and Special Collections

Amendments made by Chris Woods, NCS

0.4

September 2017

Archivist

Revisions to 4. Context, 8. Disaster and Emergency Preparedness, and 9. Access and Use

0.5

May 2019

Manager of Archives and Special Collections

Revisions made by Chris Woods, NCS and EWS, Archivist. Mostly re. updating of conservation standards / new user registration system and storage of digital preservation copies.

Approved by Taskgroup June 2019

0.6

April 2022

Manager of Archives and Special Collections

Revisions made based on suggestions made by Chris Woods during visit in October 2021. Mostly re. updating of conservation standards and removal of “Collection Management” section.

Review Date: April 2025

1. Introduction

1.1. Definitions and Role of Archives:

Archives are the record of the everyday activities of governments, organisations, businesses and individuals. They are central to the record of our national and local stories and are vital in creating cultural heritage and supporting public policy objectives. Their preservation ensures that future generations will be able to learn from the experiences of the past to make decisions about the present and future (‘Archives for the 21st Century,’ (2009) The National Archives).

1.2. The Archives Department of the University, founded in 1884, was recognised as a repository for public records in November 1927. It is responsible for the care and storage of the early College Records as well as Archives Collections, General Collection of ϲʹ Manuscripts, and Special Collections. All of these manuscript collections are bound by one common factor, their relevance to the history, people and topography of North Wales. However, their subject areas are wide ranging and are of national as well as local historical interest.

1.3 The term Conservation is used here in compliance with BS 4971:2017 and EN 16893:2018 conservation standards. Conservation refers to all measures and actions aimed at safeguarding archives, whether preventive (including policy, management, procedures etc.) or remedial (interventive measures to arrest damaging processes).1

2. Vision and mission

2.1. It is the vision of the Archives and Special Collections to be recognised as one of the finest university archives in Wales - supporting research, teaching and learning and working with other partners to promote our collections and attract users from far and wide.

2.2 It is the mission of the Archives and Special Collections to be committed to the long-term care and preservation of the collections that are held by the University and to open up access to these unique sources. The Archives and Special Collections aims to be at the heart of academic and knowledge transfer activity in the University, making a key contribution to improving the student experience and engaging even more with the communities that it serves.

3. Policy Principles and Aims

3.1. BUA&SC seeks to preserve and make accessible its historic records and archive collections, including rare books, for the benefit of the people of Wales and for use by researchers here and worldwide. It also seeks to meet the legal and other obligations placed upon it by the Public Records Act, Freedom of Information Act 2000, the Data Protection Act 1998 and other statutory instruments which direct the conservation and accessibility of records.

3.2. Conservation is a fundamental responsibility through which BUA&SC ensures the continuing care, availability and authenticity of the archival records that it holds in trust for present and future generations. The department will work to ensure that conservation remains an integral part of all archive activities from acquisition through to access. Prevention is always better than cure, and without conservation and care of collections there can be no access.

3.3. Care and Conservation Strategy

The Care and Conservation Strategy defines how the collecting body aims to achieve the goals set out in its Care and Conservation Policy. The collecting body shall develop and maintain a Care and Conservation Strategy for the collections it holds. The Care and Conservation Strategy shall cover the following as a minimum:

i. assessment of collections and specific materials within them, that defines their scale, nature, physical vulnerability and general condition

ii. an analysis of the environmental needs of material types in the collection and development of appropriate storage and handling climates that are sustainable;

iii. identification and evaluation of risks to the collections, defining hazards, their impact and likelihood and any measures that can be taken to remove or reduce these hazards;

iv. assessment, definition and prioritisation of the actions and measures necessary to protect and preserve collections and items in storage and in use;

v. development of a set of procedures for storage, handling and use of collections.

The policy sets out what the University aims to achieve in protecting and preserving its collections and in so doing it identifies the strategic approaches it will take to achieve these aims.

4. Context

This Care and Conservation Policy is a general statement, which is complemented by detailed documents as follows:

  • A&SC Operational Plan

  • A&SC Emergency Plan

  • A&SC Conservation Action Plan (NCS)

  • Benchmark Assessment (NCS)

  • A&SC Collection Policy

  • “Research into cataloguing, indexing and appraisal practices for archives in Wales: survey, ϲʹ.” (Catalog Cymru Survey 2006)

  • A&SC Loans policy

  • A&SC Collections Policy

  • University Record and Data Retention Schedule

5. Staff and Resources

5.1. All staff of BUA&SC are responsible for implementing the Care and Conservation Policy, as appropriate to their roles and responsibilities. All staff are made aware of the importance of conservation and are trained on safe handling of archival material.

5.2. All activities, from acquisition to access, are informed by the need to ensure that collections are in a fit state to be handled and that the deterioration risk is minimised.

5.3. Each member of staff undertakes a programme of routine collections-monitoring and good housekeeping practices: conservation measures include cleaning, re-packaging and re-housing material. All new members of staff are given conservation training [see Conservation Induction Checklist], and appropriate refresher training provided for existing staff.

5.4. The principal standards, guidelines and tools employed include:

  • BS 4971:2017 - Conservation & Care of archive & Library Collections

  • BS 1153 : 1992 - Recommendations or Processing and Storage of Silver-gelatine type Microfilm

  • EN 16893:2018 – Conservation of cultural heritage - specifications for the location, construction and modification of buildings or rooms intended for the storage or use of heritage collections

5.5. BUA&SC will review its conservation management programme annually.

6. Building, Security and Environment

6.1. The primary physical measure to preserve archival collections is the creation and maintenance of a suitable archive storage repository to the optimum standards (BS 4971:2017 and BS EN 16893:2018). BUA&SC seeks to ensure that the repository and its storage areas meet these national and professional standards and benchmarks in conservation.

6.2. BUA&SC seeks to ensure appropriate and secure accommodation for all its holdings at all stages, whether they are in storage, being processed, or used, to ensure that risks to the collection are minimised. To ensure this the following measures are taken in line with the above standards.

i. Continuous monitoring of temperature and humidity levels is undertaken and inspections of lux and ultra-violet light levels in the storage and research rooms are annually carried out.

ii. A pest monitoring programme is maintained in all areas where collections are held or used. Following BS EN 16790:2016.

iii. BUA&SC ensures that all buildings in which materials are held have adequate systems for the prevention of unauthorised access, particularly to repository areas; this includes CCTV and intruder alarm systems.

iv. The involvement of the Arts, culture and sport division of the Welsh Government, in the provision of professional information, to include: advice on development training courses, professional qualifications, career progression and occupational standards.

v. The involvement of relevant internal and external expertise to review monitoring data at least weekly, interpreting the data to identify problems and potential improvements.

vi. The involvement of relevant expertise to review and up-date security and fire protection.

vii. Membership of the National Conservation Service for all advice, monitoring and planning related to conservation management of the collections.

6.3. Consideration will be given in forward planning to the creation of a separate freezer storage for all plastic photographic, cinematic and acetate audio material, in compliance with BS 4971:2017.

6.4. To manage large collections of archives, individual or discrete groups of archives must be identified and documented, placed in protective enclosures and their location in the repository systematically recorded. The Archives Service ensures that appropriate levels of documentation are produced immediately upon accession and subsequently, that the archives placed in suitable archival quality packages and stored in known locations in the repository.

6.5. To ensure their adequate protection in storage, the following key measures are undertaken:

  1. The systematic provision of archival outer boxes or other packages for relevant associated groups of archival material, in quantities and in a manner that do not place them at risk while in storage, following relevant standards set out in BS 4971: 2017 Conservation & Care of archive & Library Collections and the nationally recognised Benchmarks in Collections Care.

ii. The provision of high quality archival packaging for individual documents (including books and maps etc.) or small numbers of like documents.

iii. The maintenance of a regular cleaning and dusting regime in the repository areas and their shelving and boxes, implementing a staged programme so that no area is left unchecked or un-cleaned for more than three months.

iv. Use of insect traps and other pest monitoring devices and a reporting and recording procedure to ensure that infestation is avoided.

v. The monitoring for mould outbreaks inside and outside boxes of archives and establishing a contingency procedure for response to any outbreaks, to meet the requirements of environmental health regulations and to protect archives from fungal growth.

vi. Facilities and equipment are provided for the packaging, cleaning and disinfection of archival material. No archives with loose dirt or infestation are placed in the repository areas.

vii. Facilities are sourced for copying archives to improve access and ensure preservation of information through digitisation and where appropriate archival quality microfilming.

7. Disaster and Emergency Preparedness

7.1. BUA&SC maintains up to date emergency planning procedures in line with the Library and Archives Service Business Continuity Plan. The Emergency Plan is updated annually to ensure that all information is current.

7.2. In a disaster or emergency, the first priority will be the safety of people followed by immediate action to rescue or prevent further damage to the records.

8. Access and Use

8.1. A primary purpose of conservation is the facilitation of safe access to collections.

8.2. All material will be catalogued onto the relevant archive system using appropriate cataloguing standards. The public access catalogues will describe the physical format of material and will seek to highlight whether items have care and conservation considerations which may affect access. Access to badly damaged or vulnerable material will be restricted.

8.3. Documents are consulted by readers under controlled conditions in accordance with nationally recognised and agreed standards: public access to original documents will be in the invigilated Archives Search Room which is controlled via CCTV and constant staff supervision.

8.4. Readers must sign in before accessing documents and complete a document request form for each document required. All readers must complete a “User Registration Form” on their first visit and external researchers must apply for an “External Library and Archives Card” in order to view documents.

8.5. A set of rules and Handling Guidelines are available within the reading rooms – users must read these before being issued with documents.

8.6. Where a surrogate is available, this must be used by users and staff instead of the original, where appropriate.

9. Copying and Surrogacy

9.1. The primary reason for the production of surrogates is to improve access to the records and ensure long term preservation. Where there is a demand for access, machine-readable (audio-visual) records will be copied to create a digital surrogate and made available to users. In addition to a digital access copy, a preservation copy will be kept on a backed-up server or on the Microsoft Teams Platform as recommended by IT Services.

9.2. Customer copying must not endanger the archival record, for that reason, certain restrictions are in place.

9.3. Copyright is observed when a surrogate is produced and copies are only made after seeking permission from the copyright holder. ϲʹ holds a licence with The Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) that, subject to terms and conditions, permits the copying and re-use of extracts of text and still images from printed books, journals and magazines, and digital publications. The institution also abides by the law of copyright based on the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA 1988).

10. Remedial Conservation

10.1. BUA&SC will always seek to have remedial conservation projects designed by ICON Accredited practices with accredited, qualified conservators when invasive, remedial techniques are required. Procurement of such projects will be in accordance with BS EN 17429:2020

10.2. Priorities for remedial conservation are determined using the following criteria:

  • Demand for access to the material (either demonstrated or projected)

  • Historical significance or status of deposit

  • Degree of existing damage and potential future deterioration and degradation

  • Material which is identified based on surveys and models

10.3. Documents may be cleaned and repackaged by appropriately trained BUA&SC staff.

11. Exhibitions and Loans for exhibitions

11.1. BUA&SC is committed to community engagement and involvement to facilitate the wider use of archives, and as such may loan original archival material available in connection with events of an educational, literary or cultural nature (subject to conditions and restrictions).

11.2. Care and conservation considerations will assist in determining which items, or collections, will be loaned and exhibited, and the frequency of the loan.

11.3. Exhibition and loan must be approved by the Archivist – this applies to both material exhibited internally within the institution and when loaned for exhibition to other institutions. In some cases a site visit may be undertaken.

11.4. Exhibition and loan will only be approved if the host body can demonstrate that standards of care in the temporary exhibition space adhere to those of BUA&SC and meet the requirements of BS 4971:2017

11.5. BUA&SC will not release any material for loan until a loan agreement, accepting conditions, is signed on behalf of the borrowing institution.

11.6 For further information regarding exhibitions and loans, consult the A&SC Loans Policy

APPENDIX A: POLICIES, GUIDELINES AND DOCUMENTS CONSULTED


‘Archives for the 21st Century,’ (2009) The National Archives

BS 4971:2017 Conservation & Care of Archive & Library Collections

BS EN 16893:2018 Conservation of Cultural Heritage

BS EN 15898:2011 Conservation of cultural property. Main general terms and definitions

BS 1153: 1992 - Recommendations or Processing and Storage of Silver-gelatine type Microfilm.

BS EN 16790:2016 Conservation of cultural heritage. Integrated pest management (IPM) for protection of cultural heritage

BS EN 17429:2020 Conservation of cultural heritage. Procurement of conservation services and works

ϲʹ Archives & Special Collections Collecting Policy.

The British Library guidance pamphlets http://www.bl.uk/aboutus/stratpolprog/collectioncare/publications/booklets/index.html

Collections Trust (2011). ‘Benchmarks in Collections Care.’

Used in conjunction with:

ϲʹ Library Copyright Guidance for staff:

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