Purpose
This policy articulates the general principles which underpin the care, conservation and preservation of records held by the Keeper of the Records of Scotland. These principles are aligned to national and international standards and good practice. This policy has been approved by the Deputy Keeper of the Records of Scotland (the Deputy Keeper). It supports the following part of the National Records of Scotland’s Strategic Vision for the Archives and Record Keeping Function: Selecting, preserving, and making available to our customers and stakeholders the national archives of Scotland in whatever medium, to the highest standards.
Aim
This policy sets out how NRS will preserve the national collections, as set out in the Strategic Vision for the Archives and Record Keeping Function:
Trusted: keeping the national archives, and the information they contain, safe, secure and appropriately accessible to our customers and stakeholders;
Storage: Providing the final new storage building that NRS will require in order to ensure that NRS has sufficient and suitable archive storage for all present and future physical holdings;
Collection: Developing, managing, and caring for our collection to reflect our customers’ and stakeholders’ needs and our national archival role.
Scope
This policy covers all accessioned records for which the Deputy Keeper is the Information Asset Owner. ‘Record’ means anything in which information is recorded in any form.
Towards a Format-Neutral Approach to Collections’ Care
As a first step towards an all-formats approach to collections’ care, in 2018 NRS created Preservation Branch within Information and Records Directorate. The branch encompasses the conservation, storage management and digital records teams.
We recognise that we have significant work to do in integrating our collections’ care across formats, and that we are not yet in a position to create an approach to collections’ care which is format neutral. This policy, therefore, focuses mainly on non-digital formats. We describe our approach to digital collections’ care at Appendix D.
General Principles
Whether through direct work with the collections and/or their environments, or by ongoing vigilance, the ongoing care of the record collections is the responsibility of everyone who engages with them, irrespective of roles.
The collections should be appropriately protected irrespective of their location or use. Risk management is integrated into conservation and preservation decision-making to ensure that:
- risks to the collections are accurately identified;
- conservation and preservation actions are targeted appropriately;
- the controls put in place are effective in the medium to long term;
- conservation and preservation actions provide benefits in proportion to the costs involved;
- there is an ongoing review to ensure risks are identified and assessed, and that mitigation strategies continue to be effective;
- health and safety is effectively managed in all activity associated with caring for collections.
Collection care and, more specifically, conservation decision-making considers the record and the materials it is made from. Factors for consideration include:
- significance (e.g. the tangible and intangible values attached to the
record);
- the functionality of the record;
- the uses to which the record might be put.
Collection care and conservation work must be transparent. Staff are accountable for:
- recording decisions about conservation and preservation actions, and
ensuring that this information is available for use in the future;
- taking a minimal intervention approach;
- responsible use of resources.
Collections care and conservation processes are subject to ongoing improvement, including:
- reviewing and refining processes;
- identifying opportunities for innovation, experimentation and research in order to advance treatment practice;
- applying a collaborative approach to problem solving;
- taking an open-minded approach to treatment decision making.
We recognise the importance of sustainability in all aspects of collections’ care and conservation.
All conservation work will be based on professional standards, codes of practice and ethics. This includes the principles of treatment work being reversible and distinguishable.
NRS will provide appropriate equipment and training for staff to work safely with the collections. NRS will comply with all responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act, 1974.
Categorisation of Collections and Objects
The collections contain a wide range of organic materials such as paper, animal skins, wax etc., which undergo a continual and inevitable natural ageing process. Handling directly affects the life expectancy of such material and hastens this ageing process.
Many records in the collections are vulnerable, rare or fragile e.g. parchments, seals and photographic collections. In the interests of preservation, where these can be copied onto more resilient and accessible media, a surrogate copy of the record will become the principal access medium.
In some cases, at point of production, a record may be assessed to be unfit for production or at risk. Records which are unfit for production will be withdrawn from access, and those which are at risk will be made available subject to handling restrictions. Further details can be found in the Fragile Records Policy published on the NRS website.
In practice, the records requested for the search room take priority. The NRS operates under a principle of ‘conservation for access’; all requests are logged but priority is given to records frequently requested and those records which support the digital access programmes.
Preventive Conservation
NRS recognises that preventive conservation is the most effective means of preserving the large number and diverse range of materials and object types in the collection. It takes a ‘whole collection’ approach to ensuring collections are protected in the present and for the future.
The aim of preventive conservation is to minimise deterioration and damage to collections by managing risks to the collection.
Preventive conservation potentially draws on knowledge from materials science, building science, chemistry, physics, biology, engineering, systems science and management and requires involvement of almost all staff at some level. Its success depends on collaboration between staff and disciplines across the organisation.
Preventive conservation is relevant at all stages of the record’s life and encompasses:
- provision of stable environments in storage, while on display, in transit and while in use
- protection from physical damage through appropriate support, housing and handling
- integrated pest management
- readiness to respond appropriately to events that put collections at risk, by identification and management of risk, including disaster response planning
- ensuring that all staff and collection users are trained to appropriate levels for their interaction with and/or management of the collections or individual items.
Risk Management
The importance of managing risks to our collections is represented in the NRS Corporate Risk Register, and in the NRS Information Risk Register.
Operationally, the assessment and management of risk is a key part of planning and prioritising conservation and preservation activities. This risk-based approach applies at all points of collections’ care, and throughout we seek to reduce the risks to our collections.
Appendix C gives descriptions of condition assessment categories, which are mainly used at item-level, but also can be applied at series or collection level.
Storing Collections
All collections benefit from storage in environmental conditions that:
- limit the onset or speed of chemical reactions that cause deterioration or damage
- limit physical damage from fluctuations that cause physical changes in materials
- limit exposure of sensitive materials to chemical and particulate materials that will react with them chemically or physically.
The most appropriate environmental conditions will vary depending on the composition of the individual collection or object.
The maintenance and management of our storage environments is a shared responsibility and includes: advice on appropriate storage conditions; maintenance of plant and equipment to meet requirements; integrated pest management; appropriate housekeeping regimes; selection and provision of appropriate storage
support systems; training in handling and collection movement for staff working in storage areas; provision of appropriate security for storage environments; disaster and business continuity planning.
Storage of collections will be in keeping with established good practice and in line with our role as a national institution.
Displaying and Exhibiting Collections
When objects are on display, they are vulnerable to additional risks due to: removal from their normal storage environments; necessary exposure to light; increased handling during exhibition preparation, installation and de-installation; local micro-environments within display furniture; possible exposure to volatile organic compounds from off-gassing if exhibition furniture manufacture lead-ins are insufficient; possible increased environmental fluctuations and increased dust levels due to human presence.
The development, maintenance and management of display environments are shared responsibilities that include all those noted for storage as well as the following elements: appropriate physical support for objects on display; micro-fade testing for items on display and advice on lighting based on the results of this testing; managed movement of collections between storage environments, conservation and exhibition
preparation areas and exhibition spaces, and return to store; briefing of borrowers on interaction with exhibits; and advice for, and contribution to, public programmes.
Moving Collections
Movement of collections in whole or part, for whatever reason, introduces additional uncertainty and thus increases risk. This is especially the case if the records are travelling out of their usual environment. NRS has trained staff, and appropriate equipment and vehicles to mitigate these risks.
When records are in transit they are exposed to greater risks due to: increased handling during packing and preparation, in transit, and unpacking; movement and freight/cargo handling; local micro-environments within packing; environmental fluctuations.
NRS is committed to planned and documented record collection moves carried out by trained and experienced staff and/or inducted contractors with appropriate training in moving and packing collections, and in the use of moving equipment and lifts as required. Planning is vital in any move. The level of advance planning and process documentation will range in complexity, depending on the situation. Sound risk identification, assessment and treatment is required as part of the planning phase of
any move and will be documented. Removing record collections from their normal environments may involve compromise on some of the environmental and care standards. Planning should include an understanding of the implications of such compromises and the preparation of options to minimise any risks flowing from them.
This may result in a statement outlining ‘non-negotiables’ and areas where compromise might be achieved if necessary.
When items are on loan to other organisations, the shared responsibility for the care of the NRS collections is covered by a loan agreement and other associated documentation.
NRS is committed to meeting the terms of loan agreements to care for items on inward loan from other organisations or individuals.
Access to Collections
While the principal modes of access are in person in the search room, and online digital access, NRS also provides outreach and public programmes, and exhibitions and displays, all of which involve varying degrees of access to the collections.
When records are made available for access they are exposed to additional risks due to: removal from their normal environment; exposure to light; poor handling; vandalism; misplacement. NRS is committed to reducing these risks by staff training programmes and by the use of targeted surrogacy.
Access other than via exhibitions is provided by the NRS search rooms. It is managed according to protocols and procedures, which are designed to protect our collections, including: supervised access; handling training; provision of handling aids e.g. gloves, book supports, object cradles, weights etc.; barriers to restrict or prevent handling; security provision.
Collections in Disasters or Emergencies
Events that can have detrimental effects on collection items can have serious impacts on business continuity for collections-based organisations. NRS is committed to minimising these impacts through readiness and pre-planning.
The protection of collections against the threat or occurrence of a disaster is dealt with through NRS Incident Management procedures.
For effective responses to emergencies and to ensure appropriate action to salvage collection records from a disaster situation, the NRS Incident Management procedures and the Archives Disaster Response Plan need to be complementary and updated regularly, to ensure they remain relevant and that roles and responsibilities are appropriately assigned and understood.
Salvage training exercises and/or emergency scenario planning events are to be carried out at least annually.
Response to emergencies is a shared responsibility, and will be co-ordinated through NRS Incident Management processes. The primary salvage roles will normally be undertaken by Conservation Services, and associated collections’ staff. Depending on the scale of the event and its impact, however, wider assistance and support will be sought through NRS’s Incident Management protocols.
In the event of an emergency, care of the collections may require people to act outside their normal roles with guidance from Conservation Services.
In the event of an emergency, assistance may be required from agencies external to NRS, and provision for this is managed by NRS’s Incident Management protocols. External support agencies include: reciprocal agreements with the four other national collections in the Edinburgh area, other local disaster networks and commercial providers.
Treatment
NRS is committed to the care of its collections. In support of the preventive conservation programmes, conservation staff also direct and undertake: collection maintenance and surveys, including rehousing projects; treatment of individual records and groups of records.
Conservators will prepare options and recommendations for proposed treatments or maintenance work. Justifications for the preferred option/s, the implications of the treatments on the physical and chemical integrity of the record/s, and the impact of the treatment on significance, will all be articulated to assist in informed decision-making. The treatment approach will be based on minimal intervention.
Decision-making will be recorded as part of the conservation treatment. Irrespective of scale, all record treatments will be designed to: preserve significance; be cost effective, and be carried out to high professional standards.
The effectiveness of conservation actions is a shared responsibility between Conservation Services and the business area or project for which the work is being done. Project time-lines and resource availability may impact conservation planning.
Therefore our aim is to engage at the earliest possible point in order to ensure optimum treatments for the collection items, or the proposed use of the object.
Research
Conservation and preservation research is important for the development of NRS’s approach to caring for collections and for the professional development of its staff.
Conservation and preservation research projects will be assessed against:
- research criteria;
- relevance to NRS strategic priorities;
- scope;
- duration;
- resource requirements;
- ability to produce results that can be disseminated within and outside the NRS.
Collections Care Outreach
As a national collecting institution, NRS has a role to play in providing information on care of collections to the public, owners and stakeholders and to other organisations.
Outreach can take a variety of forms, including answering enquiries and providing advice, workshops, presentations and training programmes.
Staff Roles and Responsibilities
Preservation Branch - Conservation team
Manages the preservation of the collections, incorporating preventive conservation, treatment and maintenance of collection items, exhibition support and preparation, research and outreach.
Provides specialist advice to NRS colleagues, and stakeholders on the preservation of the collections, on acquisitions and their conservation implications and authenticity, and on materials analysis.
Works collaboratively with other areas of NRS to ensure that optimum care of the collections is achieved in treatment and preventive conservation, and assists other areas to contribute to the care of collections.
Works with NRS Procurement to supply everything to do with the storage and packaging of records, to meet professional standards, promoting good practice and preservation.
Provides advice and works collaboratively with other areas of NRS to ensure documentation, storage and movement of the collections is achieved, and assists and contributes to the care of collections.
Conservation staff are responsible for maintaining the currency of their conservation knowledge and skills’ base. NRS will support their professional development within the parameters of wider corporate development plans.
NRS encourages and supports Professional Accreditation of Conservator-Restorers (PACR), the professional practice assessment for conservation professionals, and the achievement and maintenance of accredited status.
Archive Attendant teams
Public and staff access to the records is supported by the archive attendant teams, who operate from the storage buildings. Following standard, organisation-wide systems, the teams handle all record productions and returns, in order to meet service turnaround times while adhering to good handling practice.
Preservation Branch - Record Location Service and Van service
The administration and recording of all record moves and location changes or additions is handled by Preservation Branch. This function includes routine record moves between NRS sites, and specialist record moves both on-site and off-site. The Record Location System Owner is the Director of Information and Record Services.
Preservation Branch – box making service
NRS’s box making service is integral to good preservation. The service provides standard and bespoke boxes made using specialist materials. Occasionally, boxes are supplied to external customers, at cost.
All staff
In the course of their daily duties, all NRS staff should be vigilant about risks to the collections including the condition and any storage issues, reporting this to Conservation Services or by using internal reporting mechanisms as appropriate. Staff training is undertaken regularly, and staff are encouraged to seek advice and training from Conservation Services in order to better understand risks to collections and to more accurately interpret changes to collections on display.
Implementation
This policy will be implemented through liaison and agreement between relevant business areas within NRS. Implementation will include induction and training and development, and ongoing review of procedures specific to conservation and preservation projects.
Coverage
This policy applies to all activities associated with the care and preservation of the NRS collections.
Related Policies
The following polices inform, or are informed by, this policy:
- NRS’s Strategic Vision for Archives and Record Keeping Function;
- NRS Business Continuity Management System;
- NRS Incident Response and Recovery Plan;
- NRS Collections Development Policy;
- NRS Collections Information Policy;
- NRS Collections Management Policies;
- Guide to Accessioning Records in the NRS;
- NRS Accessions Management Checklist;
- CALM Conservation Categories;
- NRS Collections’ Care work plans;
- NRS Outreach and Learning Strategy;
- NRS Public Access Policy;
- NRS Exhibition procedures;
- Records Transfer Policy (Policy on the Transfer of Records of Local Interest to Local Custody).
Monitoring
This policy will be monitored through the reporting mechanisms within Information and Records Services Directorate, including regular IRS Team Leaders meetings.
Statistics are collected for preventive conservation work on records, including: pest treatments; records assessed and stabilised for storage; environmental data for storage areas; for exhibitions-related work, including records installed and de-installed; record condition reports; environmental data for exhibition and transport of collections.
Susan Corrigall
Head of Preservation
December 2021
