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The policy document, entitled Unlocking the potential of digital collections – a call to action, presents a call to action for cultural heritage organisations and funding bodies to come together in pursuit of a critical goal: the development of an inclusive, unified, accessible, interoperable and sustainable UK digital collection. It has been developed through an extensive consultation exercise across sector organisations, funders, large collection institutions and the programme’s research teams. In total 50 organisations contributed their knowledge and expertise.
Maria Balshaw, Director of Tate, says: “Towards a National Collection offers a once in a generation chance to unite the extraordinary wealth of materials held across the UK’s museums, galleries, libraries and archives. Working together to create a unified digital collection will broaden public access even further, providing an indispensable source of knowledge. Today’s recommendations make great strides towards unlocking the potential of our national collections. I urge leaders and practitioners across the arts and heritage sector to assist in progressing this transformative opportunity.”
The call to action consists of ten recommendations, supported by case studies and sample training materials, plus an appendix with information on all of the research that has been grant-funded or commissioned by the Towards a National Collection programme. Each recommendation is presented as a core proposition, alongside a series of steps which institutions and funders can take. Case studies are presented to support, contextualise and expand upon the core recommendations. The case studies have been chosen both from the TaNC research programme and from the wider culture and heritage digital sector and are backed up with a series of training materials, Towards Digital Collections – resources for galleries, libraries, archives & museums. These training materials provide comprehensive guidance for small and medium-sized organisations, covering digitisation tools and processes, preservation techniques and the application of open data standards. They also address the use of digital and computational research methods, including AI, enabling institutions to build sustainable, interoperable digital collections for wider engagement. These resources are made available under an open Creative Commons licence.
Professor Christopher Smith, AHRC Executive Chair, says: “Towards a National Collection demonstrates what can be achieved when cultural organisations and universities work together, harnessing the collective expertise of a wide range of disciplines to bring together our collections for the benefit of researchers and society at large. These policy recommendations build on the extensive interdisciplinary research undertaken into digital collections by academics and cultural sector research teams as part of the Towards a National Collection programme, and will guide our future work. In doing so they will bring the wider sector together and in that spirit I urge organisations across the cultural heritage sector to answer this call to action to ensure that we keep the UK at the forefront of inclusive, connected and sustainable collections that drive research and innovation.”
If you would like to order free print copies for yourself and your organisation, please contact: sophie.dietrich@hes.scot . If you contact them after 5 December, they will arrange postage in January 2025.
Towards Digital Collections; Resources for Galleries, Libraries, Archives & Museums, is a training course aimed at Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museum (GLAM) professionals, funded by Towards a National Collection/ UKRI AHRC. The course is aimed at those starting or continuing their digital collections journey at small and medium sized GLAM institutions, but many across the sector would potentially find the materials useful.
In early 2025, Towards Digital Collections invites anyone working within the GLAM sector and an interest in digital collections to join them for a free session which will introduce this new set of resources, as well as offering the attendees the opportunity to provide feedback about the course and help identify any potential future improvements or updates. To access the materials and find out more about these upcoming sessions please visit: https://www.towardsdigitalcollections.org/
