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Printed collections
Archive collections
Museum collections
Policy status
The Women's Library will not acquire any item unless it is satisfied that the donor or depositor has the appropriate authority to give or transfer it to the Library and, in the case of a donation, that the Library can acquire a valid title to the item. The Library will not acquire by purchase, gift, bequest or exchange any item unless it is satisfied that it has not been acquired in, or exported from, its country of origin (or any intermediate country in which it may have been legally owned) in violation of that country's laws. For archives, museum and large collections of published material, the donor or depositor must sign a formal deposit agreement and/or place in writing the terms of the gift or deposit. Material will not be acquired where adequate storage, preservation, cataloguing and access cannot be achieved within the framework of The Library's existing available resources or future strategic aims. Generally the Library requires legal ownership of all acquisitions to be transferred to the Library. Long-term loan of archival collections only may be considered under exceptional circumstances.
Printed collections
Except for Quick Reference books, commercially published magazines and duplicate materials, the Library does not generally weed or otherwise dispose of published material. In the Quick Reference collection, general reference books (almanacs, directories, etc.) are weeded when out-of-date. We keep a 5 year span of the most recent issues received of commercially published magazines and weed older issues, retaining 1 sample issue per quarter for monthly magazines and 1 sample issue per month for weeklies. Multiple copies of books, periodicals, or other published materials acquired when the Library was a circulating collection, may also be weeded. In this instance, the Library will first consider transferring these unwanted items to its handling collection. The next stage is to offer unwanted items to other libraries (Feminist Library, other London Metropolitan University libraries, local public libraries, etc.). As a last resort, the Library will consider selling duplicate published materials at a book-sale and using the proceeds to support further acquisitions of published materials.
Archive collections
Items within individual archives (fonds)
The Women's Library, reserves the right to evaluate individual items within archives and to return to the donor/depositor any records deemed to be of no permanent value or to destroy them.
Entire archives (fonds)
The Library accepts the principle that there should be a strong presumption against the disposal by gift, sale or exchange of any archives in its care. However, the Library reserves the right, with the consent of the donor/depositor where appropriate, to transfer records to another recognised public repository if it is considered that the records and/or researchers would benefit from the relocation.
Entire archives will not be removed from the public domain (e.g. returned to the donor) or destroyed without first consulting the Historical Manuscripts Commission and the archive community at large. A period of at least three months will be allowed for an interest in acquiring the material to be expressed.
Museum collections
The Library's Museum Collection is accepted in perpetuity and hence there is a strong presumption against disposal. The Library will only consider disposing of item/s if one of the following criteria is met:
a) The Library has multiple copies of identical item/s in the collection.
b) Material is irretrievably damaged and/or poses serious health and safety risks to people and/or other collections.
c) The Library can clearly demonstrate that items may be better cared for and made more accessible in another public collection.
d) Item/s demonstrably fall/s outside the scope of the Library and would be better contextualized and made more accessible in another public collection.
In all instances any recommendation to dispose of collections must first be approved in principle by the Library's governing body. Any item/s agreed for disposal will be removed from the collections in accordance to the Library's disposal procedure, drawn up with reference to the Museums Association Ethical Guidelines on Disposal.
The following procedure will be carried out for item/s that have been identified for disposal.
The Library will:
1) Make every reasonable effort to investigate if the material is legally free to be disposed of.
2) Contact any organisation that grant-aided acquisition or conservation of the item/s.
3) Seek the donor's permission to dispose of item/s where possible or appropriate.
4) Consider de-accessioning material into the Library's handling collection.
5) Offer item/s to other registered museums by means of an advertisement in the Museums Journal and, if unaccepted, offer item/s to other public institutions.
6) Ensure that legal title to the material is transferred to the receiving institution including, wherever possible, rights held in the item.
7) If no registered museum or public collection wishes to acquire the item/s the Library will:
a) Offer the item outside the public domain.
b) Exceptionally consider disposing of the item/s by sale with all funds raised re-directed into the Library's Acquisition budget.
c) Destroy the item/s ensuring any destruction is witnessed, documented and any information about the object retained.
Policy status
This Disposal Policy was written with reference to the MLA's Museum Accreditation Scheme Model Acquisition and Disposal Policy and TNA's Archive Collection Policy Statements Checklist of Suggested Contents.
It was formally approved by The Women's Library Council in October 2006 and will be reviewed in 2011.
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