Agenda item

*RESOLVED –

(1)             That the updated Collecting Policy for the Chesterfield Museum Service be approved.

(2)             That the Rationalisation and Disposal Policy for the Chesterfield Museum Service be approved.

(3)                 That a cross-party Museum Collections Committee be formed, chaired by the Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, to consider recommendations for retention or disposal of objects from Chesterfield Museum’s collections.

(4)                 That the responsibility of disposing of objects from Chesterfield Museum’s collections be delegated to the Museum Collections Committee, acting on the advice of the curatorial staff.

The Head of Regeneration submitted a report on the work done to update the Acquisitions and Disposals Policy for Chesterfield Museum, in line with Arts Council England Accreditation Standards, and to develop a procedure for dealing with the disposal of items from Chesterfield Museum’s collections, in accordance with good practice.

Chesterfield Museum’s current Acquisitions and Disposal Policy had last been approved in 2008, although there were no procedures within it on how to dispose of objects from the collection, if they did not fit the acquisition guidelines contained in the Policy.

In accordance with best practice, the Acquisitions and Disposal Policy had now been divided into separate but linked policies – the Collecting Policy and the Rationalisation and Disposal Policy.

The Collecting Policy (attached at Appendix 1 to the report) outlined the Council’s policies in respect of acquiring material for its museum collections. The Policy set criteria and limitations for future collecting, including an emphasis on collecting items relevant to Chesterfield Borough, not actively collecting new archaeological items unless they were significant finds discovered as part of an official excavation within the Borough and consideration of the costs of storage and conservation.

The Rationalisation and Disposal Policy (attached at Appendix 2 to the report) outlined the Council’s rationale and procedures for reviewing material in its museum collections and assessing their significance in order to inform decisions about their future care. The Policy included a Collections Assessment Matrix with criteria, against which items could be assessed. The initial rationalisation assessment of any item would be carried out by senior curatorial staff, with reference to the Tourism, Museums & Events Manager, in order to produce a rationalisation report. It was proposed that delegated responsibility for disposal of items from the collections should be given to a cross-party Museum Collections Committee of Members, which would be chaired by the Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, with decisions informed by the evidence presented in the rationalisation reports.

The report identified a number of options available for disposal of an item where this was agreed by the Committee, with preference to be given to keeping the item in the public domain where possible.

Consultation on the proposed Policies had taken place with the Museums Association through their Collections Development Programme.

The meeting considered the option of including a member of the public on the Museum Collections Committee, although it was noted that Arts Council advice did not recommend this. It was felt that the elected Members on the Committee could represent the interests of the public.

*RESOLVED –

(1)             That the updated Collecting Policy for the Chesterfield Museum Service be approved.

(2)             That the Rationalisation and Disposal Policy for the Chesterfield Museum Service be approved.

(3)                 That a cross-party Museum Collections Committee be formed, chaired by the Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, to consider recommendations for retention or disposal of objects from Chesterfield Museum’s collections.

(4)                 That the responsibility of disposing of objects from Chesterfield Museum’s collections be delegated to the Museum Collections Committee, acting on the advice of the curatorial staff.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS

1.      There is currently no delegated responsibility for disposal of items from the Museum’s collections.  As disposal is a necessary part of any Collections Policy, it is important that this matter is addressed.

2.      Rationalising Chesterfield Museum’s collections will allow better care and conservation of objects retained, as well as more opportunities to display retained items and achieve better access for people wanting to use the collections for research.