Heritage Archives Collection Policy 2012

SCOPE

This policy outlines the conditions governing the acquisition and management of archival material owned and managed by the Dunedin Public Libraries and contained within the Heritage Collections. Its principles also govern the archive collections held within the Alfred & Isabel Reed Collection.

1. Collection Scope

This collection aims to collect unpublished records of individuals and organizations with historical significance relating to the history and development of Otago and Southland.

The collection scope is representative rather than comprehensive and takes into account other collections held locally, such as those at the Hocken Library. Some local archives, including those relating to the library as a department of the Dunedin City Council, are held in the DCC Archives.

For the purposes of this policy the following are considered to be normally out of scope:

Artifacts (except for small objects with either a particular association with Dunedin Public Libraries or a strong relationship to other items in the collection)
Photographs (except for photographs with a particular collection association)
Film
Oral History
Digital media including ‘Born Digital’, CD-ROMs, CDs, etc.

2. Collection Purpose

The purpose of the Archives shall be to appraise, collect, organize, describe, and preserve the historical materials and records of Otago and Southland. The further purpose of the Archives shall be to make available these materials to interested persons for research into the history of southern New Zealand and the individuals and organizations within it.

3. History

The archives collection comprises unpublished records dating from the foundation of the library and includes materials forming part of the original bequest of A.H. & Isabel Reed.

4. Description of Collection

These collections consist of primary source material, including correspondence, typescripts, reports, research materials, financial records, scrapbooks, diaries, annotated books, audio-visual recordings, press clippings and printed ephemera. A small number of photographs are retained where there is a connection to other items within the Archives.

5. Housing

Archives are housed in a strong room in the Upper Basement area of the City Library.

6. Collection Management

Records will be handled with care and treated with respect, including acknowledgement of tikanga Maori.
Permission to reproduce material must be obtained from senior Heritage Collections staff.
If permission is given for reproduction of materials, the process is carried out by Heritage Collections staff.
Library staff may discuss copyright or reproduction matters but are not qualified to give a legal opinion.
Compliance with the Copyright Act 1994 (as amended) is the responsibility of the user of archival materials.
Records are arranged, described, and stored according to generally accepted archival standards.
Dunedin Public Libraries will maintain a register of donations.
The Library undertakes to safeguard personal information and rights as far as possible, and consistent with the provisions of the Privacy Act 1993.
No book, document, manuscript or other item may be removed from the Archives with the exception of material loaned to another institution for exhibition purposes.

6.1 Loans.

Materials from the Archives may be loaned to other institutions or organizations only under the following circumstances:

Written authorization is obtained from the Heritage Collections Librarian and, in the case of international loans, by the Library Services Manager.
A written agreement in which the items are enumerated, and including insurance terms and period of loan.
A Condition Report is filled out by Heritage Collections staff assisted by the Bindery & Preservation Team Leader, as required, and by the borrowing organization upon receipt of the materials.

6.2 Selection Tools

Not applicable

6.3 Selection Guidelines

Archives materials are normally acquired in the following manner:

The library may actively solicit donations, where appropriate.
The decision whether to accept a donation rests with the library.
Donations which carry stringent donor restrictions may not be accepted.
The donor form must be completed at the time the material is lodged.
Transfer of Custody – archival materials deemed outside the scope of the collection or included within the scope of public records collections held elsewhere, may be transferred to the appropriate institution or the donor directed to an alternative suitable deposit.
Materials will not be accepted on deposit in the Archives.
Purchase – no budget is allocated for the purchase of archival materials but items may be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

6.4 Deselection

Items may be deaccessioned from the collection where:

They can be shown to be exact duplicates of material already held , or
The donor or vendor had no right to give or sell them to the library
They have physically deteriorated & conservation is not possible, or are actively placing other parts of the collection at risk.
The items are transferred to the original party or to a third party with the agreement of the original party.
The items are deemed to be outside collection scope.
Where complementary items, and normally in greater numbers, reside with other institutions and would benefit from the addition of the fewer items held by Dunedin Public Libraries
Another institution is clearly a more suitable repository

7. Formats

Formats collected include:

Print
Photographs with collection relevance
Other formats e.g. sound recordings, may be collected where there is a clear to other material already included in the collections.

Formats collected exclude:
The following formats are considered to be normally out of scope:

Digital materials
Oral History
Film

8. Acquisition and Purchasing

Items may be acquired by purchase, gift, bequest, exchange, or transfer from another collection within the library or from another institution.

9. Standing Orders

Not applicable.

10. Donations

The collection is largely comprised of donated materials. Conditions governing the receipt of donated items are included in the donation form, see Appendix 1. Items will be accepted on the basis that the arrangement provides for the permanent transfer of custody and control of the material to the Archive.

11. Preservation and Repair

Within the constraints of the existing building and budgets, the Library provides the best possible environmental conditions. Storage is designed to minimise wear and tear and to deter theft, as far as is consistent with providing ease of access.

Heritage Collections staff identify items in need of conservation and this work is carried out by the Library’s Bindery & Preservation Unit. Very fragile items may be retained, but access to them may be restricted.

12. Review

This policy will be reviewed within five years

Endorsed by the Senior Management Team, 19/06/2012

Heritage Archives Collection Policy 2012

SCOPE

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