Presentation from a lecture to UCL students about current principles and practice in managing museum collections. Primarily of relevance to a student audience.

1. Collections Management Nick Poole, Chief Executive, Collections Trust

2. Independent UK not-for-profit representing collections and the people who work with them.

3. We believe that everyone everywhere should have the right to access and benefit from collections.

6. What is Collections Management....?

7. A balance between the competing demands of the highest feasible level of user access to collections against the challenge of long-term preservation.

8. A multi-disciplinary approach which uses the diverse skills and knowledge of collections professionals and others to achieve sustainable solutions.

9. A commitment at all levels of a collecting organisation to ensure the appropriate integration of policies, strategies, procedures, plans and resources.

11. Organisational Mission Collections Management Collections Development Collections Information Collections Care Collections Access

14. Challenges and barriers....

17. The greatest challenge resides in demonstrating the public value of managing collections. It’s the ‘so what’ argument. - Roy Clare, CEO, MLA

18. We have a dream, in which a museum is planning a project and the team includes the front-of-house staff, the curator, the registrar, the manager. And each of them comes to the meeting with a clear idea of what the other does, why it matters and how it can help them...

20. Things we do which can help you when you’re working with Collections....

29. Some takehomes...

30. No matter what excites or motivates you about working in museums, archives or libraries, you need to know what’s involved in managing a collection.

31. There is no divide between management and delivery – they are two sides of the same process, and neither exists without the other.

32. Bad management is incremental – the worse it gets, the worse it gets – and eventually it stops you being able to act.

33. If in doubt, always go back to first principles. What are you trying to achieve, who are you doing it for? Management is mostly just common-sense.

34. There’s never been a better time to go into culture as a career. There’s a generational shift going on out there, old ideas are being challenged and new models created. Public awareness is higher, politicians are smarter, there are more opportunities. Have fun!

35. Get in touch! Nick Poole 01223 316 028 [email_address] P.S. We do placements...