Collections Trust

Collections Trust
Name	Collections Trust
Formation	1977
Type	Charity; Membership organisation
Headquarters	UK
Location	United Kingdom
Leader title	Chief Executive

Contents

Collections Trust is a UK-based charity and membership organisation supporting museums, archives, galleries and heritage organisations. It provides standards, guidance, training and consultancy to cultural institutions such as the British Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, National Trust, Tate Modern and Museum of London. The organisation works internationally with partners including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the International Council of Museums, ICOMOS and the European Commission to promote collections management best practice.

History

Collections Trust was established in 1977 as a response to sector needs identified by institutions like the British Library, Imperial War Museum, Natural History Museum, National Maritime Museum and Royal Albert Hall. Early activities were influenced by developments at the Victoria and Albert Museum and policy frameworks such as those led by the Museums Association (UK), the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Arts Council England. Over subsequent decades the organisation collaborated with bodies including the Heritage Lottery Fund, the National Archives (UK), English Heritage and the Scottish Government on cataloguing, collections care and documentation projects. In the 1990s and 2000s it expanded international work, engaging with institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, the Louvre, the Rijksmuseum and universities such as University College London and the University of Glasgow.

Its mission focuses on improving collections management across museums, galleries and archives including the British Museum, National Portrait Gallery (UK), Ashmolean Museum, Imperial War Museum and Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester). Core activities include developing standards used by organisations like the Natural History Museum, advising on digitisation with partners such as the Wellcome Trust, supporting conservation projects linked to the National Trust for Scotland and promoting access models demonstrated by the Victoria and Albert Museum. The Trust engages with policy-makers at the European Commission, funders such as the Arts and Humanities Research Council and professional networks including the Collections Association and the International Council on Archives.

Collections Trust is best known for creating technical standards and tools adopted by institutions like the British Museum, Tate Britain, Victoria and Albert Museum, National Galleries of Scotland and the Royal Collection Trust. Notable outputs have influenced standards developed in collaboration with the British Standards Institution, the International Organization for Standardization, and consortia involving the Digital Preservation Coalition and the Library of Congress. Publications and schemas produced by the organisation have been applied in projects with the Europeana initiative, the National Library of Scotland, the Bodleian Library and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Its guidance has informed policy at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and practice at regional bodies such as Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums.

The Trust delivers training used by staff from the British Museum, National Museums Liverpool, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Australian National Maritime Museum and the Canadian Museum of History. Programmes cover collections management, documentation, digitisation and care with input from experts affiliated to University College London, the Courtauld Institute of Art, the University of Leicester and the University of York. It runs accredited workshops in partnership with organisations like the Museums Association (UK), the National Council on Archives and industry specialists from institutions such as the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum, London.

Major projects have been delivered in partnership with the European Commission, the British Library, the Heritage Lottery Fund, the National Archives (UK) and international museums including the Smithsonian Institution and the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Initiatives have included digitisation consortia for the Europeana portal, collections auditing for the National Trust, and emergency preparedness collaborations with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Other projects have engaged regional museum networks like the Museum Development North West, the South West Museum Development Programme and academic partners such as the University of Manchester.

The organisation is governed by a board drawn from professionals at institutions such as the British Museum, National Galleries of Scotland, Tate Modern, Museum of London and the National Museums Scotland. Funding sources include membership subscriptions from organisations like the Victoria and Albert Museum and National Museums Liverpool, project grants from the Arts Council England, contracts with the European Commission, philanthropic support from foundations such as the Wellcome Trust and fee income from consultancy delivered to bodies like the National Trust and the Scottish Government.

Category:Museum organizations