Revisiting Museum Collections

A toolkit for capturing and sharing multiple perspectives on

museum and gallery collections
Acknowledgements

The Revisiting Collections methodology was developed in 2005 by Museums, Libraries, Archives
(MLA) London and Collections Trust (then MDA, the Museums Documentation Association) to
support museums and archives to open up their collections for scrutiny by community groups
and external experts, to reveal and record ‘hidden histories’ and to build and share a new
understanding of the multi-layered meaning and significance of the objects and records they hold.

The first edition of the Revisiting Museums Collections toolkit was developed by consultants
Val Bott, Jon Newman and Alice Grant in partnership with Leighton House Museum, Kingston
Museum and the Museum of Domestic Design & Architecture, Middlesex University. The
toolkit was further piloted and refined in 2006 by Alice Grant working with teams from the Cutty
Sark, University College London Museums and Collections (including the Grant Museum of
Zoology, the Geology Collections, the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology and the UCL Art,
Ethnographic, Geology, Institute of Archaeology and Science Collections) and the Victoria and
Albert Museum.

This 3rd edition was updated in 2009 by consultants Caroline Reed and Heather Lomas with
support from Gordon McKenna, International Development Manager, Collections Trust.

Cover photograph courtesy of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council.


Contents

1 Introduction: What is Revisiting Collections?......................................................................4

The Revisiting Museums Collections toolkit

2 Theory and Practice................................................................................................................8

3 The Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit and SPECTRUM...........................................13

4 Applying the toolkit to capture new information................................................................16

5 Revisiting Museum Collections and the SPECTRUM

Information groups and Units of information.....................................................................19

6 Final notes: Implementation and continuing development...............................................27

7 References.............................................................................................................................29


1 Introduction: What is Revisiting
Collections?
Since 2006, new and diverse users across England have been enjoying exciting opportunities
to engage very directly with objects, images, manuscripts and records in our museums and
archives.

They have been using and shaping Revisiting Collections, an innovative methodology developed
by the Museums, Libraries, Archives Council (MLA) and Collections Trust. Revisiting Collections
supports museums and archives to open up their collections for scrutiny by community groups
and external experts and to build and share a new understanding of the multi-layered meaning
and significance of objects and records.

The collections in public museums, galleries and archives across the UK are there for the benefit
of every member of our national community and visitors from every part of the world. Revisiting
Collections is designed to help managers, staff and volunteers across the heritage sector meet
our own increasing expectations, and those from the public, government and funders, that we
should acknowledge and celebrate cultural ownership by: providing open and inclusive access
to our collections and information about them; engaging proactively with our communities;
and providing services relevant to people’s needs and the ways they access and interact with
information in the 21st century.

Professionally, the Revisiting Collections methodology seeks to break down some of the
perceived barriers between ‘people-focussed’ and ‘collections-focussed’ working in our museums
and archives. It will help ensure that the resources put into cataloguing and documentation give
users information that is accurate, insightful, relevant and accessible. It will support the sector to
prioritise documentation planning and integrate user-focussed documentation as part of project
and programme funding bids.

1.1 The theory

Revisiting Collections has its roots in research and consultation undertaken by MLA London
across local authority museums and archives. This showed that many curators and archivists
believed the limited content of their existing collections to be a real barrier to engagement for
new and diverse audiences. They felt not enough had been collected directly from new or
minority communities to reflect their own cultures, lives and experience.

Revisiting Collection’s starting point is that ‘traditional’ social and local history collections, as
well as many specialist collections, hold a richness of objects, images, documents and
information that reflect and reveal not only the shared concerns and experience of all humanity,
but more specifically: Britain’s position at the centre of world-wide empire and trade, including
the trade in human beings; the centuries old diversity of our population in terms of ethnicity,
culture, faith, sexuality, wealth and well being; and the international influences that have shaped
our industry and culture, product design, craft skills, science, technology and the use of materials.

Beyond this, the methodology recognises that many museums and archive services, both rural
and urban, are located at the heart of communities whose members could bring a wealth of new
understanding and expertise to the interpretation of collections. Revisiting Collections provides
a mechanism for tapping into that rich, multi-layered seam of knowledge.

A key strength of Revisiting Collections is that it provides a framework for embedding new
understanding and perspectives on objects and records directly within the museum or archive’s
collection knowledge management system, ensuring that it forms part of the story about the
collections that is recorded and made accessible to all.


1.2 How does Revisiting Collections work?
Revisiting Collections provides two toolkits, one for museums and one for archives. Both can be
downloaded in PDF format from the Collections Link website:
www.collectionslink.org.uk/Increase_access/revisiting_collections

These two toolkits support and prompt museum and archive staff to

n Open up collections for external scrutiny and comment

n Acknowledge and tap into sources of information, expertise or understanding from outside
the museum or archive, or from colleagues in other disciplines
n Develop a way of working with community groups or individuals – learning what people with
various backgrounds and interests feel, know and want to know about our collections
n Deepen our understanding of objects and records through working closely with groups or
individuals with a special perspective or knowledge
n Conduct new research into collections and identify objects and records that contribute to our
awareness of the interlinking histories of a diverse population
n Give respect and value to ‘other voices’ by making newly revealed information about objects
and records permanently accessible to all users through enhanced cataloguing, description
and interpretation
n Use this enhanced understanding of the relevance of existing collections as a platform for
proactive work with new or hard-to-reach audiences

Revisiting Collections takes an organisation through a series of steps: pre-planning; working

with external subject experts and/or community based focus groups; and then capturing the
specific or contextual information gained at an appropriate level within their collections knowledge
management system.

Firstly, the methodology encourages curators and archivists to think laterally about collections
and the untapped evidence they might hold. It encourages them to engage with people from
outside the museum or archive, or from different departments within it: people who bring a new
perspective on the objects or records. It is important to learn what kind of ‘back story’ about
collections users and potential users want and expect to find in catalogues, interpretative texts
and captions, whether on-site or online.

Much of the information might be intrinsic to the items themselves: a simple cotton frock with
a Paisley pattern in a typical social history collection has much to tell us about the ways in
which our country’s heritage is tangled with the transatlantic slave trade and empire; the
imagery and language used on a WWII propaganda leaflet reveals colonialist assumptions
and racial stereotyping. Further information will lie in the background paperwork that shows an
item’s provenance and history of use – and this is seldom made readily available to users other
than staff.

So, Secondly, the methodology prompts and helps curators and archivists to gather the
information users want, from both internal and external sources.

Within the museum or archive these sources might be e.g.:

n Paper based files – including the original accession correspondence, exchanges with
researchers, object history files, information panel texts, captions or records of the research
done for past exhibitions, the findings from outreach and education projects etc.
n Electronic files that exist in parallel to the official catalogue database
n Sharing knowledge and understanding with colleagues e.g. subject specialists, curators
from another discipline, conservators, community liaison or education staff


External sources might be, for example:

n Published research and comment

n Comparable collections held elsewhere – regionally, nationally or worldwide
n Individuals or groups with a specialist subject knowledge or interest – these could be
academics, enthusiasts or people looking at the material from a fresh perspective
n People who have been directly involved in e.g. manufacturing the objects in a museum
collection or generating the records in an archive
n People who have used the objects or been affected by the services covered by the records

The Revisiting Collections toolkits and guidance notes on Running a Revisiting Collections
Focus Group (all available for download from the Collections Link website:
www.collectionslink.org.uk/Increase_access/revisiting_collections) give curators and archivists
a framework for engaging groups or individuals directly with material from the collections and
working with them to reveal and record multiple layers of meaning and significance. This might
be new, verifiable, factual information or a new understanding about the cultural importance of
an object and the sensitivities around terminology used to identify and describe it.

Finding these new ways into an understanding of the collections will help curators and archivists
serve and attract non-traditional audiences and people wanting to access the material from a
non-traditional viewpoint.

Thirdly, the Revisiting Collections toolkits provide a way of embedding this new information
within the museum or archive’s collection knowledge management system, ensuring that it forms
part of the story about the collections that is recorded and made accessible to all. For museums,
the approach now forms part of the Collection Trust’s national standard for collection information
management: SPECTRUM.

Revisiting Collections sees rich, full and accessible cataloguing, description and documentation
as a fundamental tool for public access to collections and information about them.

1.3 Gathering external voices and expertise

Revisiting Collections doesn’t dictate how an organisation should create the partnerships that
will help it gather external input and information. Many museums and archives will be well
experienced in working with community groups e.g. on oral history or reminiscence programmes.
They might already have built bridges as part of their outreach and audience development
programmes, or in their work with academic partners. Revisiting Collections offers a way of
strengthening these existing links and programmes: making sure they offer people direct access
to collections and leave a lasting legacy.

To date, most museums and archives involved in developing and trialling the Revisiting
Collections toolkits have worked with focus groups made up of people with a particular interest
or take on the collections. Sometimes these groups have been specially recruited; sometimes
they have been well-established partners. The Running a Revisiting Collections Focus Group
guidance note gives advice and models for organising and facilitating groups and maximising
the outcomes.

However, Revisiting Collections isn’t simply a toolkit for gathering information in a focus group
setting. The approach will give equally powerful results when used to capture the results of
community based research or one-to-one conversations with individuals, whether academics,
researchers, external subject specialists or people with experience or a perspective that throws
new light on objects or records. It can be used to capture collections knowledge from curators,
archivists, other staff and volunteers, ensuring that this stays with the organisation when
colleagues move on.


Moreover, while it is rewarding to run a ‘stand alone’ Revisiting Collections project, the
methodology’s strength is that it can be used ‘organically’ to underpin and enrich on-going or
newly planned programmes of work and ensure that they leave a lasting legacy of information
and understanding. The methodology can even be used to capture the outcomes of past
programmes and build them into the museum or archive’s collection information management
system for the benefit of future users.

1.4 The impact

The evidence to date from museums and archives that have used the Revisiting Collections
toolkits is that the methodology has vitalised their work with collections and stimulated:

n A real excitement about community engagement with collections

n Productive and imaginative collaborative inter-disciplinary working between colleagues:
e.g. archivists, education, outreach, museum curatorial and documentation staff
n A better understanding by all staff of the power and potential of rich collection documentation
and description – and of the importance of inclusive language and terminology
n A new awareness of how much valuable new information and understanding about collections
can be contributed by ‘external voices’ – and recognition that the museum or archive will
never be the fount of all knowledge about what it holds
n A user-focussed approach to tackling and prioritising documentation backlogs
n Imaginative new approaches to display and interpretation

1.5 A national role for

Revisiting Collections
MLA Council and Collections Trust are working
together to take the Revisiting Collections
methodology forward. Between 2009 and 2012,
the methodology is being used to underpin
the ‘engaging communities with collections’
strand of Stories of the World, one of the
major projects at the core of the UK’s four year
North London schoolchildren Revisiting Collections at
Cultural Olympiad.
University College London
Photo courtesy of: The Grant Museum of Zoology, UCL


2 Theory and practice

2.1 Resources and return

Revisiting Collections’ premise is that providing the opportunity for groups and individuals from
outside the museum to engage very directly with objects from the collections will be an enriching,
empowering experience for all. Participants will develop a new understanding of the museum as
a resource for knowledge and inspiration and of the role of the curator in selecting, preserving
and interpreting a wide range of material. Museum staff will better understand the nuances of
meaning their collections hold for diverse audiences and the importance of making full and rich
information available to all – using language that is accessible and culturally aware.

The approach necessarily involves working in a focussed way with relatively small numbers
of participants. It is demanding in terms of staff time and, if its outcomes are to be embedded,
requires a change in the way organisations collect and handle information about their collections
and how they make it accessible. This investment of time and resources has the potential to bring
considerable rewards: enabling the museum to engage in new ways with widening audiences
and respond much more effectively to their demand for relevant, sensitively presented
information about collections that stimulates their interest and addresses the questions they
want answered.

Revisiting Collections acknowledges there are many ways of gathering information, at many
stages of an object’s life within the museum. This might be from: the original donor, earlier
owners or users, subsequent viewers, people with a particular understanding or perspective on
the object or its contextual history, fellow curators or external experts of every sort. The methods
of gathering this information will vary, whether in one-to-one exchanges or group discussion.
A guidance note to support information gathering through focus groups, Running a Revisiting
Collections Focus Group, is downloadable from the Collections Link website.

We recommend that the Revisiting Collections methodology should be used ‘organically’ to

inform, stretch and strengthen programmes of work that meet the museum’s wider strategic
objectives.

This Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit focuses on how the learnt information might best
be selected, structured and made accessible through a museum’s collections information
management system, so that is valued, attributed and made accessible for generations to come.

2.2 Revisiting Collections and Collections

Knowledge Management
Simply to achieve the minimum standard that meets the requirements of the Museums Libraries
and Archives Council’s (MLA) Museum Accreditation Standard, museums across England
make a major investment of staff time, skills and resources in documenting and managing
information about their collections. A key premise of the Revisiting Collections approach is that
this investment should result not just in a useful internal tool for collections management, but in
an accessible, searchable system that gives end users information that is accurate, insightful and
relevant to their needs.


The Revisiting Museums Collections toolkit provides a prompt and tool for organisations to
enhance the way they collect and use information:

n Assessing, researching and describing collections from new perspectives

n Trawling paper and supplementary electronic records for specific and contextual information
n Tackling the technical aspects of embedding newly revealed information and attribution into
the collection knowledge management system
n Gathering and recording full contextual information about objects at the time of acquisition
and subsequently
n Making collection description a channel for unmediated access to information, not just a
management tool

A key strength of the toolkit is that it shows how to assess and capture new specific and
contextual information about objects in a way that is compliant with SPECTRUM, the UK national
standard for collection management.

2.3 Documentation – the bigger picture

Huge strides were made in the 1970s and 1980s to computerise existing museum catalogues
and make collections data genuinely accessible for the first time to end users. Contemporary
collections information software systems offer immense potential for storing, manipulating and
linking with the Internet to re-purpose that data in exciting ways. Museum Accreditation requires
museums to develop and submit a timed, prioritised five-year Documentation Plan to address
backlogs. Despite this, for many museums documentation remains a low priority, perceived
as ‘back of house’ work, regularly deferred. Governing bodies and funders cannot always be
persuaded that managing collections information effectively is fundamental to providing the
access to which communities rightly feel entitled.

Collections Trust is keenly aware of the tensions between the national need to clear
documentation backlogs and the sector’s available resources of time, people and skills. The
Trust’s response is to acknowledge a need to ‘trim’ and prioritise documentation objectives.

The 2009 Publicly Available Specification (PAS 197) Code of practice for cultural collections
management, published by the British Standards Institute and sponsored by Collections Trust,
emphasises the role that good information management plays in the holistic running of collections
organisations. To quote from the forward to the PAS:

Museums, archives and libraries are responsible for striking a balance between the preservation
of collections and the provision of access to them, so that they can continue to be accessible for
future generations.

A new generation of practitioners are bringing new expertise to cultural collections management,
in areas such as project and programme management, knowledge management and fundraising.
Driving this multi-disciplinary approach is an understanding that the sustainability of collections
is a holistic issue.

Collections Trust argues that it is key to persuade museum and collection managers to think
strategically about the information they need in order to provide good services for their users and
to further the aims of their organisation. They encourage collections organisations:

n To address documentation and policy decisions critically, so that they are realistic in terms
of resources and needs.
n To take a strategic approach to balancing the extent and depth to which collections are
documented with users’ needs: prioritising backlogs accordingly and accepting that different
types of objects will have different levels of documentation.


This means accepting that there may always be objects in collections for which records meet
only the minimal requirements for Museums Accreditation. This approach can only work if the
decisions taken about prioritisation are rigorous, thoroughly well informed and take account of
the needs and interests of all potential audiences for collections, not just current users.

Using the Revisiting Collections approach can be a powerful tool in helping museums assess
and develop their documentation priorities to meet users’ needs.

2.4 Documenting to meet users’ needs

The development of the Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit was informed by research
undertaken by MLA London across local authority museums in 2003. Many of the curators
interviewed believed that their museum’s collections held little of direct interest to minority
groups within their culturally diverse local communities. This was seen as a major barrier to
engaging with new audiences. To remedy this, curators were seeking to collect recent and
contemporary material to reflect the lives and culture of, particularly, Black and ethnic minority
groups and faith groups. They were doing less to explore and re-interpret their existing
collections from new standpoints.

The original developers of the Revisiting Collections methodology wrote:

Every object can reveal something about the past, from its raw materials, methods of
construction, age and design, or from evidence of use, modification or adaptation. Some
artefacts may only be fragments of an original, while others carry makers’ or users’ names,
inscriptions or other marks, providing direct evidence which can be explored further. Those
who want to ‘read’ the story an object can tell need access to the object, a questioning mind
and some modest forensic skills. Some objects prompt emotional or intuitive reactions in those
who see or handle them. Some are inspiring. Some enable the viewer to make connections
with their own experience or memories in a way that stories alone could not do. Anyone can
create a story around an object or group of objects, for their own pleasure or to share with others.

Curators seek a notion of ‘truth’ in the way they document objects. They use their own expertise,
knowledge and professional conventions to record basic information essential to identifying a
specific object or group of objects within the collections in their care. Documentation is still seen
by many museum workers as a tool for the management of the collections rather than a major
step towards opening them up for a wide variety of uses. Busy curators may record only the
bare minimum, relying upon their systems of history files, housing e.g. associated photographs,
conservation reports, archives and correspondence, to provide a context for these objects.

Curators tend to see the addition of contextual detail as an element of presentation or

interpretation rather than documentation. As a result the information usually recorded in a
database does little to enable a potential user, whether it is a museum worker or someone
else, to find answers to such questions as whether the object is commonplace or rare, how
culturally significant it may be, whether the wear and tear of use can reveal anything about the
effectiveness of its original purpose or the impact it may have had upon its user.

As we begin to open up access to more and more collections on museum web-sites it will
become increasingly important to create databases which include clear images of the objects
themselves as well as appropriate contextual information. This should include detailed – and
therefore useful – rather than minimal descriptions of objects to enable those browsing the
records to select specific items which interest them.

In addition, real or imagined stories and personal responses or added information should be
recorded, offering ways of seeing these objects from new perspectives.

10
Revisiting Collection’s starting point is that ‘traditional’ social and local history collections, as
well as many specialist collections, hold a wealth of objects, stories, images, documents and
information of relevance to audiences from every section of the national community, as well
as to worldwide visitors. These collections reflect and reveal not only the shared concerns and
experience of all humanity, but more specifically the centuries old diversity of our country’s
population in terms of ethnicity, culture, faith, sexuality, wealth and well-being. They demonstrate
Britain’s historical position at the centre of worldwide empire and trade, including the trade in
human beings. They illustrate the international influences that have shaped our industry and
culture, product design, craft skills, science, technology and the use of materials.

To be used as a bridge to engaging new, non-traditional audiences, this intrinsic and contextual
information must to be researched, revealed, recorded and made accessible. Revisiting
Collections’ approach is rooted in good management and provision of collections information.
The methodology encourages museums to provide clear and full descriptions, to disclose
appropriate contextual information and to improve ways of engaging with potential users, in
particular by recording and sharing responses to objects or collections from a wide variety of
people, with very different interests and perspectives.

Rich, full documentation enables curators to be effective communicators and advocates for their
collections. Sharing greater knowledge of museums’ holdings encourages wider understanding
and use of objects. Engaging new users, whatever their interests and background, will always
be easier if the available documentation is thoughtful and detailed, drawing on all the available
resources within museums: correspondence; ‘history files’; old exhibition catalogues etc: all the
material relating to objects not usually accessible to the public, or even to non curatorial staff. The
experience for users will be enriched if the documentation goes further: incorporating knowledge
and responses from people outside the museum who have connections to the collections through
life experience or learning, or who regard them from a particular cultural perspective.

To facilitate searching, retrieval and understanding, documentation needs to be sensitive and

culturally aware in its use of language and naming conventions.

2.5 Practicalities
By providing opportunities for small focus groups to explore aspects of collections and to offer
their own ideas and impressions, the Revisiting Collections pilots confirmed that observing and
describing objects is a key part of developing understanding. Viewers and users of collections
who interact or engage with the objects have a much richer experience than those who simply
look at them and read the labels the curators have provided.

Facilitating such direct interaction with collections is challenging; capturing the resulting
information in museum databases even more so. As described above, keeping up with
the demands of recording even quite basic contextual information about objects can be
overwhelming when faced with large backlogs of documentation and other ‘front-of-house’
priorities. Capturing the outcomes from community based work with collections might seem
to be an expectation too far when resources are stretched. Taking the Revisiting Collections
approach to its logical extreme, the task of recording and capturing multiple perceptions of
every object in a collection could be infinite.

We recommend that the Revisiting Collections methodology be used to simply as a tool: a

way of working that will strengthen and stretch programmes that reflect the museum’s agreed
strategic priorities for collections use and for audience development.

11
 However the Revisiting Collections methodology is to
be used, it is critical to factor the necessary resources
of staff time and skills into your forward planning so that
new insights and information gained will be captured
effectively and retrievably in your museum’s collections
information management system. There should be
a continuity between the processes of gathering the
new information and capturing it in your database.
Curatorial and cataloguing staff should be involved at
every step of Revisiting Collections process, including
the focus groups or conversations with individuals that
are used to gather new insights about objects and the
language in which they are described.

The following sections of the Revisiting Museum

Collections toolkit will help museum staff approach
the task of assessing and analysing newly gathered
information and finding the most effective way
of capturing it in an existing, or slightly modified,
collections information management system. To
achieve this we have categorised and related the
In an early pilot for Revisiting Collections, artist types of information revealed through the Revisiting
in residence Karimah Bint Daoud worked with
staff at Leighton House Museum in London to Collections process to the Units of information
re-interpret the ‘Arab Hall’. identified in SPECTRUM, the recognised UK standard
Photo courtesy of: Olivia Woodhouse
for collection management and documentation.

12
3 The Revisiting Museum Collections
toolkit and SPECTRUM
Created in partnership with the museum community and managed by Collections Trust,
SPECTRUM represents a common understanding of good practice for museum documentation
and collections management. It describes twenty-one procedures for managing collections and
the specific and contextual information held about them. It defines the information that needs
to be recorded in order to support those procedures and to promote access to the collections
themselves. Published by the Collections Trust as an open standard on behalf of the libraries,
archives and museums sector, SPECTRUM is free to use non-commercially and is available as a
downloadable PDF at www.collectionstrust.org.uk/spectrum

3.1 SPECTRUM and Accreditation

The MLA Museum Accreditation scheme defines eight of the twenty-one SPECTRUM procedures
as ‘primary’. These are the procedures that a museum must have in place in order to meet the
documentation element of the Museum Accreditation Standard.

The eight ‘primary’ procedures are:

n Object entry
n Acquisition (including the maintenance of an accession register and its security copy,
and marking and/or labelling procedures)
n Location and movement control
n Cataloguing (with provision of appropriate indexing)
n Object exit
n Loans in
n Loans out
n Retrospective documentation.

It is not the function of this Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit to address these basic, ‘primary’
procedures in any detail. However, the Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit does provide a
useful framework to help museums assess priorities and user need as they take their museum
documentation beyond the basic requirements for Museum Accreditation.

3.2 SPECTRUM’s Information requirements

As well as outlining the twenty-one procedures that make for good collections management
practice, SPECTRUM defines the Information requirements needed to record every aspect of
the implementation of those procedures (as well as intrinsic and contextual information about the
museum object itself). In its section on ‘Procedures overview’, SPECTRUM describes the link
between a procedure and its Information requirements as follows:

The operation of a procedure will lead to the recording of various items of information. These are
known, in SPECTRUM, as the procedure’s Information requirements.

In SPECTRUM, Information requirements are defined at two levels:

n Units of information – These are the lowest level of information-recording and may represent
data in one field of a system (it is possible [for] a Unit of information to be represented in other
ways, e.g. the name of a field, or instructions on how to record data in a field)
n Information groups – These are sets of Units of information brought together to enable the
recording of: an object (both physically and with regard to events in its history); events that
take place in the organisation (e.g. an Audit); persons, organisations, peoples and places
associated with objects and events.

13
Most museum documentation systems are now SPECTRUM based. Not all museums find the
need to use every Unit of information offered in SPECTRUM. Many museums will use names
other than those given to the Units of information to identify comparable fields in their own
documentation system’s database. Some will have introduced other, organisational or subject
specific fields for their own use.

SPECTRUM Compliant systems have been checked by Collections Trust to confirm that they
can ‘represent’ every Unit of information in SPECTRUM. This does not mean that the names
of every field in a Compliant system will have the same name as a Unit of information in
SPECTRUM. Nor does it mean that every organisation must record information in every Unit
of information available in SPECTRUM for every object. For further information see:
www.collectionstrust.org.uk/spectrum

3.3 Changes made to SPECTRUM to accommodate

Revisiting Museum Collections
In 2005-06, the developers of the 1st and 2nd editions of this Revisiting Museum Collections
toolkit looked at SPECTRUM to see how fully the Units of information then available could
support capturing new insights and information about objects revealed by the Revisiting
Collections process, and making them retrievable by end users in a meaningful way. Suggestions
for additional units were submitted to Collections Trust. SPECTRUM 3.1 and subsequent editions
have been updated to include new Units of information or amended definitions to encompass
the outcomes of using the Revisiting Collections approach.

3.4 Capturing responses in a SPECTRUM based

documentation system
Analysis of people’s responses to objects during Revisiting Collections focus groups and one-to-
one discussions generally reveals five key types of response:

n Factual
‘Facts’, such as the identification of people or places in photographs, which may or may not
be verifiable from external sources

n Intellectual responses to the objects

Contributions or expressions of interest in the context of the objects, establishing them within
a particular tradition or movement and finding new links with other objects, people, events,
places or cultures

n Cross-cultural or associative responses

Contributions which focus on common themes and uses for the objects, enabling respondents
to identify points of familiarity to their own lives

n Narrative responses to the objects

Stories, family traditions or imaginary contexts inspired by the objects, based on individuals’
own experiences or imaginations

n Instinctive responses
Reactions to the physical presence and form of the objects: their form, texture, design or
function

14
In Section 5 we show how Revisiting Museums Collections ‘information units’ distilled from these
categories might be usefully grouped under six headings:

n Description and history

n Associations and references
n Use of the object
n Owner’s contributions
n Viewers’ contributions
n Record & attribution information

To enable capture within a SPECTRUM based documentation system, the Revisiting Museums
Collections information units are compared to SPECTRUM and mappings made to the relevant
Units of information. The aim of this approach is to ensure compatibility and interoperability with
existing documentation systems and professional practice.

3.5 Evaluating the Units of information

Collections Trust is happy to receive feedback from the community of SPECTRUM users.
Museums working with the Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit are encouraged to share and
submit their experiences and comments on using the SPECTRUM Units of information to capture
the information they are gathering, including any requests for additional units to be created.

15
4 Applying the toolkit to capture
new information

4.1 Preparation
Revisiting Museum Collections information units are outlined and mapped to SPECTRUM Units
of information in Section 5 below.

The Units of information to which they are mapped are just a selection of those contained within
SPECTRUM. They have been selected specifically to guide users in the management of the
types of information they are likely to obtain from running a Revisiting Collections project. There
are many other Units of information in SPECTRUM which users might find applicable to their
individual organisational requirements.

Core collections
Revisiting Museum
management
Collections
and cataloguing
requirements
requirements

The Revisiting Museum Collections information units you will need to use will depend on:

n The collections being described

n The participants involved in the process
n The nature of their interest and interaction with the collections.

In order to select the most appropriate units to use it will be necessary to analyse:

n The types of information participants have indicated they want to know about objects
and their context
n The information you have gained about objects through participants’ responses, insights
and knowledge

4.2 Creating and evaluating sample records

As a result of this analysis it will be possible to select and use the Revisiting Museum Collections
information units given in Section 5 to create sample catalogue records that capture and present
the relevant information. Both for retrieval and to ensure sensitivity to cultural nuance, particular
attention should be paid to the use of language and naming conventions.

Ideally, these sample records should then be offered for further discussion with the same or
another external user group and their responses used to assess and amend the approach taken.

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4.3 Adapting your existing recording system
4.3.1 Review and map fields
The first step is to review the fields supported by your existing documentation system and see
if the Revisiting Museum Collections information units you need to record the outcomes of your
project can be mapped to them directly (see Section 5). A number of the units you will need may
not be catered for by the fields already supported by your museum’s documentation system.

4.3.2 Communicate with support staff and other users

If this process identifies units that are not currently supported by your system then you will need
to discuss options with the staff member(s) responsible for supporting your system within the
museum. Designing and implementing system alterations can be a slow and difficult process.
There may well be other users within the museum, or in other departments of larger organisations
who share the application (e.g. library, archive or records managers). Any changes to the system
may impact on its functionality for them. You will need IT system staff support to help identify and
resolve these issues.

4.3.3 Local adaptation of the system

Some collections management applications allow system managers to create new fields and/or
cataloguing views locally. If organisations propose to undertake this work themselves, this must
be done by a staff member or external adviser with proper knowledge of the system.

It is important to test any new recording fields prior to release to users. Always carry out a backup
of the database before adaptation and testing.

Throughout the process you should consult and communicate with all museum colleagues, IT
support staff and other system users. All changes to your system must be properly documented.
The use of the new fields should be explained in any online help text available within the system
and in documentation procedures manuals. Where it is required (see Section 5), controlled
terminology will need to be agreed and assured. Finally, colleagues and end users will need
training and/or support in the use of the new fields.

4.3.4 Supplier adaptation of system

Many organisations will not be able to update their systems locally, either because the application
will not permit this, or because they do not have the requisite skills in-house. In these
circumstances it will be necessary to submit a statement of your revised requirements to the
supplier of the system and to agree an approach to implementation. This may be achievable
within the existing support contract, or on a paid consultancy basis.

Your system supplier may be reluctant to undertake the work, as it will create a ‘non-standard’
data structure, which could cause difficulties for future upgrades. In these circumstances, you
should establish with the supplier whether the required new Units of information might be made
available as part of future upgrades to their system. If so, you will wish to make temporary local
recording arrangements in the short term.

4.3.5 Temporary recording solutions

However you approach it, making any significant changes to your collections information
management system must be a carefully managed process and may take some time. You will
almost certainly need to consider interim approaches to documenting information captured
through using the Revisiting Museum Collections toolkit.

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Any temporary recording arrangements carry risks including:

n Using valuable staff time to set up and manage additional recording systems which may have
a short shelf life
n The need to ensure the ongoing compatibility of data with the main data recording system
n The need to reconcile the data into a single source at some point in the future, which may
incur additional costs
n The need to make an explicit link between existing and new documentation, within each
recording system, in order that the additional information is not lost in the future
n The potential to compromise the existing data structure if additional recording is not properly
documented

The museum may decide to identify existing unused fields as ‘holding’ fields for capturing content
on a temporary basis. If this is done it is critical to ensure that the process is fully documented
in order to enable migration to an alternative location at a later date. This option should only be
undertaken with the support of technical staff.

Alternatively, your museum may decide to record information offline in associated documentation
files, either in alternative digital formats or using paper-based documentation. A database
or spreadsheet format might be appropriate. As an example, an Excel Revisiting Museum
Collections: data capture spreadsheet is downloadable from the Collections Link website:
www.collectionslink.org.uk/Increase_access/revisiting_collections.

These resources should be clearly identified and stored according to existing organisational
policies for digital media or object-related documentation.

It will be necessary to ensure that any digital temporary recording system is able to export data
in a standard format, which can be uploaded into the main collections management system in
the future. The simplest means of ensuring this is to make your collections management system
provider aware of the project proposals and to seek confirmation of their ability to accept data
from specific software applications (e.g. Excel, Access) if or when their structures are updated to
accommodate data matching the new SPECTRUM Units of information. Suppliers may indicate
ways in which the museum’s use of such applications will make the eventual upload process
easier if or when it does happen.

4.3.6 Linking with existing documentation

Individual digital or paper-based files should always be accessible by Object number.

In order to ensure that current and future users are made aware of the newly available
information about objects, existing records should be amended using available Reference fields
to alert users to any external documentation sources.

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 5 Revisiting Museum Collections and the
SPECTRUM Information Groups and
Units of information
Section 4.3 Adapting your existing recording system sets out the process of adapting existing
documentation systems to accommodate Revisiting Museum Collections information units (RMC
‘units). It also describes ways in which temporary recording solutions can be deployed. The
main key to ensuring the compatibility of the existing and new information recording is through
using SPECTRUM and mapping new and existing fields to the Units of information set out in
SPECTRUM.

This section shows how Revisiting Museum Collections information units map to SPECTRUM
Units of Information and Information groups

5.1 Description and history

RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Object history note Object history note Object history Use ‘Object history note’ to record a
and association description of the history of the object. This
information may include aspects of the object’s history
which are not known through documentary
evidence, but which may be deduced from
examination of the object itself, such as
the condition of the object, the materials
used to make it or its likely use. Ensure that
the reason for any conclusion based on
examination of the object is documented here.
Usage note Usage note Object history Use ‘Usage note’ to record a description of
and association the use of a particular type of object, but not
information for details in the history of a specific object.
Material Material Object description Record a term identifying a material used in
information the creation of the object.
Material source Material source Object description Record the name of the place of origin of the
information material at the most specific level known. Use
usual conventions for Place name recording.
Note: It is necessary to record the Material if
recording the Material source.
Condition check/ Condition check/ Condition Record a description of the physical condition
assessment note assessment note and technical of the object. This may be an extended
assessment narrative, but if necessary use ‘Condition
information check/assessment reference number’ to refer
to an external document if there is not enough
space within the field to record all the detail
required.
Condition check/ Condition check/ Condition Record a reference to an external document
assessment assessment and technical giving fuller information than is recorded in
reference number reference number assessment ‘Condition check/assessment note’.
information
Field collection Field collection Object collection Record the name of the place of discovery
place place information or field collection of the object at the most
specific level known. Use usual conventions
for Place name recording.

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RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Field collection Field collection Object collection Record additional information about the
note note information discovery or field collection of the object. This
might comprise a narrative description of the
specific location, and context of the discovery
of the object, including the reason why it was
likely to have been there. Note: The ‘Field
collection place’ does not have to be recorded
with the ‘Field collection note’, but each may
hold value for users.
Design influences Association note Object history Record a narrative description of the way
and association in which other design traditions may have
information affected the design of the object. For
example, influences may have originated
from different cultures or periods in history.
Use the Related object Units of information
to document any known design influences of
specific objects.
Design impact Association note Object history Record a narrative description of any ways
and association in which this object may have impacted on
information or affected the design of other objects. Use
the Related object Units of information to
document any instances where specific items
have been created as a result of the design
impact of the object being described.

5.2 Associations and references

RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Related object Related object Object history Record the ‘Object number’ of an object that
number number and association is related to the object being documented.
information
Related object Related object Object history Where appropriate, record a single term
association association and association describing the nature of the association of an
information object to the object being documented, e.g.
‘depiction’, ‘design’.
Related object Related object Object history Record a narrative description of the nature
note note and association of the association of an object to the object
information being documented.
Associated activity Associated activity Object history Record a single term describing an activity
and association associated with an object
information
Associated activity Associated activity Object history Record a description of, or comment relating
note note and association to, an activity associated with the object.
information Note: Although not necessary to record
the ‘Associated activity’ when recording the
‘Associated activity note’, recording the single
term may help retrieval of, and access to, the
‘Associated activity note’.

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RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Reference number Reference number Reference An identifying number for a reference (e.g. file
information number, image number)
Reference Reference Reference A single term describing the nature of the
association association information association of the reference (e.g. ‘depicted’,
‘cited’)
Reference note Reference note Reference A narrative description of the reference (this
information may be a description of an image or an
abstract of a written reference)
Reference type Reference type Reference A single term describing the type of reference
information recorded (e.g. ‘image’, ’report’, ‘letter’)
Associated Associated Object history The name of an organisation associated with
organisation organisation and association an object
information
Associated people Associated people Object history The name of a cultural, ethnic or faith group
and association or other community associated with an object
information
Associated person Associated person Object history The name of a person associated with an
and association object
information
Associated place Associated place Object history The name of a place associated with an
and association object, recorded at the most specific level
information known.
Association type Association type Object history Where appropriate, a single term describing
and association the way in which an organisation, people,
information person or place was associated with an object
(e.g. ‘trader’)
Association note Association note Object history A narrative description of the nature of the
and association association of an organisation, people, person
information or place, with the object being recorded.

5.3 Use of the object

RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Selector Exhibition Use of collections The name of the Person selecting an object
organiser or information for use such as display, outreach, review etc.
Researcher/User
Selector’s Person’s Person information Record the occupation (or position within
occupation occupation the organisation) of the person making
the selection, (e.g. ‘curator’, ‘community
representative’, ‘education officer’, ‘diversity
officer’).
Selection date Research/use of Use of collections The date the object was selected for use.
object date information

21
RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Selection reason Research/use of Use of collections A single term describing the purpose of the
object method information object’s selection, e.g. ‘display’, ‘external
research’ etc.
Selection note Research/use of Use of collections A narrative description of the reason why the
object note information object was selected for this specific purpose.
Label text Label/raisonné text Object use A narrative description relating to the object or
information a group of objects, intended for public access
either within a building or a digital resource.
Note: the term ‘Label’ has been used here
to emphasise the match with the SPECTRUM
Unit of information; in fact as with any Unit
of information this could be renamed at a
local level
Label text date Label text date Object use The date when a particular ‘Label text’ was
information written
Label language Label language Object use The language in which a particular ‘Label text’
information was written
Label purpose Label reason Object use A term describing the purpose of a particular
information ‘Label text’, e.g. ‘sign’, ‘display label’, ‘online
learning resource’.
Label audience Label audience Object use A term describing the audience at which
information a particular ‘Label text’ was aimed, e.g.
‘general’, ‘KS2’
Label author Label author Object use The name of the Person who wrote the ‘Label
information text’.
Label note Label note Object use Record any relevant commentary relating to
information the ‘Label text’ (e.g. to emphasise that the
language or attitudes expressed in a label
might be seen as unacceptable to a 21st
century audience)
Display/event title Exhibition title Use of collections The name of the display, exhibition or other
Use Spectrum information event for which a particular ‘Label text’ was
information group: written.
Display dates Exhibition Use of collections The start and end dates of a ‘Display/event’
begin date and information for which the ‘Label text’ was written.
Exhibition end
date

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 5.4 Owner’s contributions
RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Owner’s name Owner Object history Record the name of a Person known to have
and association owned the object.
information
Ownership dates Ownership dates Object history The range of dates between which the object
and association was known to have been owned by the
information ‘Owner’
Owner’s personal Owner’s personal Object owner’s A description of how and why a particular
experience experience contribution object or type of object is known to have
information been of particular importance to an ‘Owner’.
This may include reasons why the object
was particularly relevant to their life; reasons
why the ‘Owner’ collected the object, or
decided to sell, donate or bequeath it, or a
reminiscence of an event, situation or other
memory prompted by the object. Note: If the
significance is a reflection on, or conjecture
regarding the significance of an object, a
description of feelings about, or personal
relevance of an object, then use the ‘Owner’s
personal response’ Unit of information (see
below)
Owner’s personal Owner’s personal Object owner’s A description of the way in which the ‘Owner’
response response contribution responded intuitively to the object. This
information may include one or more different types of
personal response, including a description
of the ‘Owner’s feelings about an object
beyond their personal experience of it; a
description of why the ‘Owner’ ‘connected’
with an object, or regarded it as personally
special; a description of the broader cultural
meaning which the ‘Owner’ attached to an
object; a description of the aspects of an
object which the ‘Owner’ felt were of particular
artistic, historical or cultural significance,
their response to it from the point of view of
a different cultural standpoint; or conjecture
as to what the object might have meant to
another individual connected with the object,
such as the creator, user or previous owner.
Owner’s reference Owner’s reference Object owner’s Documentation of any additional reference
contribution to the object provided by the ‘Owner’,
information e.g. an event, object document, person or
organisation. If verified, this may be recorded
by museum staff more fully in the appropriate
area.

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RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Owner’s cultural Person’s group Person information The cultural group or ethnicity with which
group/ethnicity the ‘Owner’ identified themselves. Beyond
ethnicity, this may include e.g. a statement
of the ‘Owner’s identification with a particular
faith or with the gay, lesbian, bisexual or
transgender communities.
Owner’s Person’s Person information A narrative description of the known personal
biographical note biographical note history of a ‘Person’.
Owner’s Person’s Person information A single term describing the occupation of a
occupation occupation ‘Person’.
Owner’s Owner’s Object owner’s Any observations or comments on the
contribution note contribution note contribution ‘Owner’s contributions which the museum
information wishes to make, e.g. the way in which
the information was obtained, or any
discrepancies noted.

5.5 Viewers’ contributions

RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Viewer’s name Researcher/user Use of collections The name of the ‘Person’ providing the
information ‘Personal response’ to an object. If, the viewer
does not wish to be identified by name (see
Section 6.2 Attribution) leave blank or use an
explanatory term e.g. ’name unrecorded by
request’
Viewer’s role Viewer’s role Object viewer’s A single term describing the role of the Viewer
contribution (‘Researcher/user’) in relation to the object,
information e.g. ’viewer’, ‘user’, ’researcher’ or ‘visitor’.
Viewer’s personal Viewer’s personal Object viewer’s A description of how and why a particular
experience experience contribution object or type of object is of particular
information importance to a Viewer. This may include
reasons why the object is particularly relevant
to their life or a reminiscence of an event,
situation or other memory prompted by the
object. Note: If the significance is a reflection
on, or conjecture regarding the significance
of an object, a description of feelings about,
or personal relevance of an object, then
use the Viewer’s personal response Unit of
information (see below)

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RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for
Unit of information Information group
Viewer’s personal Viewer’s personal Object viewer’s A description of the way in which the Viewer
response response contribution responded intuitively to the object. This
information may include one or more different types of
personal response including a description
of the Viewer’s feelings about an object
beyond their personal experience of it; a
description of why the Viewer ‘connected’
with an object, or regarded it as personally
special; a description of the broader cultural
meaning which the Viewer attached to an
object; a description of the aspects of an
object which the Viewer felt were of particular
artistic, historical or cultural significance;
their response to it from the point of view of
a different cultural standpoint or conjecture
as to what the object might have meant to
another individual connected with the object,
such as the creator, user or owner.
Viewer’s reference Viewer’s reference Object viewer’s Documentation of any additional reference
contribution to the object provided by the Viewer e.g.
information an event, object document, person or
organisation. If verified, this may be recorded
by museum staff more fully in the appropriate
area.
Viewer’s cultural Person’s group Person information The cultural group or ethnicity with which
group/ethnicity the Viewer identified themselves. This may
include e.g. a statement of the Viewer’s
identification with a particular faith or with
the gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender
communities.
Viewer’s Person’s Person information A narrative description of the known personal
biographical note biographical note history of a Viewer, especially where this is of
relevance to their responses recorded above.
Viewer’s Person’s Person information A single term describing the occupation of
occupation occupation a Viewer, e.g. ‘artist’, ‘teacher’, ‘student’,
‘unemployed’, ‘retired’ etc.
Viewer’s Viewer’s Object viewer’s Any observations or comments on the
contribution note contribution note contribution Viewer’s contributions which the museum
information wishes to make, e.g. the way in which
the information was obtained, or any
discrepancies noted.

25
 5.6 Record & attribution information
These Units of information can be recorded alongside any of the other Units of information cited
above in order to provide contextual information about the status or origin of the information
being recorded. There may be system limitations affecting the scope for including this contextual
information.

RMC ‘unit’ Use SPECTRUM SPECTRUM Use for

Unit of information Information group
Record type Record type Record Describes the level of description that
information the record contains. This is useful for
distinguishing between information relating to
a collection or group of items, and information
relating to a specific object.
Unit of information Unit of information Amendment The name of the Unit of information to which
added added history the ‘Record & Attribution information’ relates.
Amendment Amendment Amendment The name of the ‘Person’ giving the final
history authoriser history authoriser history approval for a piece of information being
added to the record.
Information source Information source Amendment The ‘People’, ‘Person’ or ‘Organisation’
history providing information recorded
Information source Information source Amendment The date information is supplied to be added
date date history to the record
Recorder Recorder Amendment The ‘Person’ recording the information.
history
Recording date Recording date Amendment The date information is added to the record.
history
Recording Recording Amendment A description of the state of development of
progress progress history information about an object.

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6 Final notes: Implementation and
continuing development

6.1 Completeness
During the piloting of the Revisiting Museums Collections toolkit, some museum staff were
concerned that they would be required to gather information to populate all the Revisiting
Museums Collections information units as listed in Section 5. It should be emphasised that,
although the toolkit provides scope to record a wide range of information, this is far from
mandatory. Not all the Revisiting Museums Collections information units will be relevant to
every type of object, or of interest to every audience. Some information may not be known
about an object, nor might it ever be known. The testing of the Units of information as proposed
in Section 4, will help museums decide what information they wish and are able to record as
part of a specific project. The information units able to be captured could well change between
projects depending on the material used, the participants and the purpose of the project being
undertaken.

6.2 Attribution
It is important to explain to all Revisiting Collections participants that archives, museums and
the people who use their collections and collections information need to understand the sources
behind the information given in catalogues or exhibition labels – everyone is interested in what is
‘fact’ and what opinion, we want to know who is telling us this particular story about this particular
object – how do they know, what has influenced them? That is why the attribution of information
and comment gained through using Revisiting Collections is vital.

Contributions gathered must be clearly attributed to their source in the documentation record.
The point of view of a museum staff member, an external researcher, an owner or donor and a
viewer or user of an object may differ for many reasons. This does not mean that any view is
‘wrong’, or deemed to be of less value, but the source should be documented in order that users
of the information can form an appropriate judgment e.g. a former user of a tool or wearer of a
garment will have specific and unique knowledge of that item.

Whether external responses to the collection are gathered through a group discussion or in a
one-to-one interview, it is essential to obtain participants’ written consent to the museum’s use
of their contributions in a variety of ways. These might include e.g. catalogue entries, finding
aids, interpretative materials and exhibition labels. All participants must be asked to complete a
contributor sheet. Collecting the participant’s name, address and signed consent authorises the
museum or archive to make public use of the information.

However, individual focus group participants or interviewees may prefer that their comments
are not attributed to them by name, or in any way that will identify them specifically. This must be
respected, but it is still important for you to gather and record as much information as you can to
put their responses to the objects into a meaningful context.

If they have attended a focus group, as a minimum they may prefer their contributions simply to
be identified to the group session itself e.g. ‘Information provided by a member of the Tanzanian
Women’s Group at a Revisiting Collections focus group session at the Royal Geographical
Society, May 2007’ (record using ‘Information source’).

Beyond that, they may be willing to be referred to by an agreed self-description e.g. ‘Former
Brookwood nursing staff member (1980s-1990s)’ (record using ‘Viewer’s occupation’)

They may also be willing to provide further information about their age, cultural background, faith,
sexuality etc that would provide context for their contributions (record using ‘Viewer’s cultural
group/ethnicity).

27
Where possible, the Units of information described in Section 5.6 (Record & attribution
information) above, should be used to describe the status and origin of information documented.

Data Protection Act

It is both culturally and legally important for museums to adhere to the requirements of the Data
Protection Act. Reassurances of contributors’ legal rights under the Act should be provided;
museums also need to ensure that they are able to meet the requirements of the Act as set out
at: www.ico.gov.uk/Home/for_organisations/data_protection_guide.aspx

6.4 Vocabularies and use of language

A number of the Units of information allow for the recording of narratives. These are extremely
important elements of the provision of contextual, personalised responses to collections.
However there is also a clear need for the development of controlled terminologies in order that
some aspects of the proposed documentation can be recorded consistently in a way which will
enable users to retrieve specific items or groups of items according to certain criteria. Examples
include the retrieval of responses to collections from specific ethnic or cultural groups, or the
identification of objects with associations with particular places or peoples. In some instances, the
addition of new terms to existing vocabularies will be required; in others, entirely new controlled
terminologies are needed. Section 5 and SPECTRUM indicate where controlled terminology is
required.

28
7 References

Title Publisher Date URL

Publicly Available British Standards 2009 http://www.bsigroup.com/en/
Specification (PAS Institute Standards-and-Publications/How-we-
197) Code of practice (sponsored by can-help-you/Professional-Standards-
for cultural collections Collections Trust) Service/PAS-197/
management
Revisiting Archives Collections Trust 2009 www.collectionslink.org.uk/Increase_
Collections toolkit: 3rd access/revisiting_collections
edition
Running a Revisiting Collections Trust 2009 www.collectionslink.org.uk/Increase_
Collections Focus access/revisiting_collections
Group
SPECTRUM: the Collections Trust Regularly www.collectionstrust.org.uk/spectrum
UK and international updated
standard for
Collections
Management

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