5 - Archival preservation

Summary

Introduction

Preservation: the function of ensuring archives are managed, stored and used under conditions that ensure their longevity.

Preservation is the function which underpins everything we do when we commit to keeping archives. In selecting archives, organizing them and making them available for use we should always be aware that our goal is to keep these records for ever. This entails a range of management functions and skills which must be in place to protect and preserve the archives, no matter what their age or medium. Preservation management is something everyone in the team, including support staff and volunteers, should be doing. There is an innate tension between most of the work of managing archives – particularly the provision of access – and the preservation goal. But keeping that goal in mind can improve the other areas of our work. For example, assessing preservation requirements as part of the accessioning process ensures that conservation and packaging needs are being logged as part of one handling of the material, thus preventing unnecessary wear and tear. At the same time, management data is being collected to feed into strategy and priority setting for preservation purposes. Figure 5.1 shows the relationship between preservation and the main archival functions discussed in Chapter 4, indicating the archives management activity that both affects and is affected by preservation considerations.

Preservation planning consists of many elements and Table 5.1 gives a brief overview of the separate elements and what they involve, also noting digital record preservation issues.

In all of these areas we are seeking to prevent damage and/or deterioration, minimize damage that cannot be prevented, to treat damaged material and above all to ensure that the archives remain legible and accessible. Preservation is a complicated regime of care and maintenance where we identify what can be done routinely and what needs special attention. If done correctly, it ensures that the archives we have inherited, together with the archives of our own time, will survive for future generations

Policy and strategy

A preservation policy is an agreed statement on the repository's aims and strategic approach to preserving archives. As with all policies, it provides the framework rather than the detail of what to do and how.