High quality collections management is the foundation to taking control of your archives and developing their use. Different advice and direction are needed depending on whether you are in the first stages of archiving a collection or need a review of an established service.

You may have no in-house expertise, an army of volunteers or an experienced team. I am experienced at supporting archive collections in all types of situations with a view to maximising the quality of their care and use to professional standards and best practice, such as those required under Archive Accreditation.

Recent projects

• Advising a national professional membership organisation on developing its own archive, writing a collections development policy and brokering a deposit of the collection with a formal archive institution.
• Helping an archive service in London to prepare for its Archive Service Accreditation application by developing  a strategic plan, accompanying policies, and workplans across all aspects of the service.
• Supporting the British Psychological Society to develop a practical workplan for developing its archive in-house including surveying the collection, advising on storage, creating a strategic vision and a suite of recommendations with accompanying workplan
• Working with campaigners in the Infected Blood Scandal and the Haemophilia Society to assess their respective archives, identify and cost cataloguing needs, and begin negotiations with a formal archive repository about collecting these records. 
• Writing Conservation Plans and Management and Maintenance Plans for major Lottery bids including collection managmene tpolicies  e.g. The Box in Plymouth, The Hold in Suffolk and Newham Heritage Service. 
• Providing bespoke training to develop archive service staff in management skills

Services include:

• Establishing new archive collections with relevant strategies and policies
• Feasibility studies to assess key factors such as locations, buildings and business models
• Reviewing existing archival operations to provide guidance and costed action plans
• Designing the operation and layout of an archive service
• Assessing cataloguing requirements and priorities with costed action plans
• Writing collection management policies e.g. for collection development and access
• Staffing and skills development including providing training, job descriptions and supporting recruitment
• Disaster management planning
• Analysis and planning for conservation
• Developing access methods onsite, online and in the community
• Integrating archives into other operations and working collaboratively e.g. libraries, museums, commercial or business activity