Assessing risk in your collection

Assessing risk in your collection

A risk assessment is a process which helps place an organisation in a better position to care for and safeguard collection material.  Conducting a risk assessment can help you to:  

  1. Identify potential threats to your collection and the possible damage they may cause 
  2. Assess the likelihood of a potential threat occurring  
  3. Identify and prioritise risk mitigation measures  
  4. Set priorities and allocate resources effectively for significant items   
  5. Identify previously unconsidered preservation concerns  


In the Victorian Collections CMS, risk is documented at item level. Risk assessment information is entered in the Risk section of an Item record.   Each time you catalogue an item, carry out a condition report, or change an item’s storage or display arrangements, you can use that opportunity to conduct a risk assessment. Even a seemingly robust item in excellent condition may be subject to harm from potential risks.   This information sheet will guide you through key steps to take when conducting a risk assessment for a single collection item, and recording the assessment using the Victorian Collections CMS.  


GETTING STARTED 

Open the record of the item for which you are conducting the risk assessment, click Update, and navigate to the Risk section of the record. Click ‘Add risk report’ and follow the fields and drop-down menus which appear.  

1. IDENTIFY RISK TYPE
In the Victorian Collections CMS, each risk report assesses against a single risk type. The risk types you can assess against are based on the 10 Agents of Deterioration. If more than one type of risk applies to your item, you can create multiple risk reports.  

In Risk type, select the risk type that this report is assessing against:   

  1. Physical forces (e.g. earthquakes, transportation damage or poor handling)  
  2. Fire (external; bushfires, internal; building fires)  
  3. Water (e.g. from flood waters, plumbing issues or roof leaks)  
  4. Vandalism or Theft  
  5. Pest (e.g. insects or rodents)  
  6. Contaminant (e.g. inappropriate cleaning products, acidic packaging materials, dust or air pollutants)  
  7. Light and UV (external; sunlight, internal; light bulbs).  
  8. Temperature (very high or very low temperatures)  
  9. Humidity (high or low humidity levels)  
  10. Custodial Neglect (e.g. data loss or dissociation of an item from its associated information) 

2. IDENTIFY RISK FACTOR

Determine whether the likelihood of the risk occurring is High, Medium, or Low, and make a selection in the Risk factor field. In identifying the most appropriate risk factor, you might consider:

  1. The probability of this risk occurring 
  2. The likely degree of severity if this risk were to occur 

Some risks will be less substantial or less likely to occur than others. These will not require the same level of attention and can be assigned a low risk factor. It is wise to focus on any high risk factors identified.  


3. ASSESS THE IMPACT THIS RISK POSES TO THE ITEM
Your assessment should aim to identify the impact to the item should the risk you have selected occur. Consider potential damage to or loss of the item, as well as the Significance of this item, and its relevance to and place within the collection as a whole.  Would damage or loss result in potential loss in value? Here ‘value’ does not only refer to financial value, as an affected item may lose scientific research potential or artistic and aesthetic merit.   

Use the Assessment notes field to record your assessment and the information that has informed it.   Your notes may vary in length and detail depending on the item you are conducting the risk assessment about. Notes could be as simple as “Potential loss of value is high. This item has strong social value to the local community and could not be replaced monetarily.” You may also use this field to record additional information which contextualises the risk factor you have selected above. Include the Name and contact details of the individual who carried out the risk assessment.  

4. IDENTIFY RISK MITIGATION STRATEGIES AND ACTIONS

Working from the assessment you have undertaken, identify strategies and actions that can be taken to mitigate against this risk.   Use the Risk mitigation fields (Handling details, Storage details, Display details and Packing details) to record the details of the mitigations and any corresponding instructions.  Mitigations will be informed by the item and the risk that the assessment relates to. Examples include organising building repairs, investing in climate controls, moving the item to another area of a room or building, consulting a conservator for treatment or making specific decisions to display, store or transport the item in a safer way.   

PUTTING YOUR RISK ASSESSMENT TO WORK 

The next steps to take will vary depending on the outcome of your assessment. If you have identified that the risk factor is high and/or that the potential impact of the risk is substantial, it’s likely that you will need to place a high priority on implementing the identified mitigations.  When identifying next steps, bear in mind that there may be multiple mitigation strategies in response to a single risk. Whilst some mitigations may require additional funding or a long-term approach, there may be other mitigations which can be easily and immediately implemented.  With more involved and substantial mitigations, you can always refer back to the assessment at a later date if additional capacity and resources become available. 


GLOSSARY
  1. Risk Assessment: An assessment of the potential risks, their likelihood and severity, and the degree of potential value loss associated with a collection or item.
  2. Risk Factor: The likelihood of a risk occurring and/or the severity of damage caused if the risk occurred.
  3. Ten Agents of Deterioration: A framework developed by the Canadian Conservation Institute which outlines the ten primary causes of change, loss or damage to collection items and heritage objects. 
Info
FURTHER RESOURCES
Info
  1. Australian Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Material (AICCM), Agents of Change: 10 Agents Over 10 Months webinar series, https://aiccm.org.au/events-and-webinars/webinars/10-agents-10-months 
  2. Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI), 10 Agents of Deterioration, https://www.canada.ca/en/conservation-institute/services/agents-deterioration.html
  3. Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service, SHARE Museums East and Collections Trust UK, Assess and manage risks in collections care,  https://www.thepilgrimtrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/How-to-Guides-Assess-and-Manage-Risk-in-Collections-Care.pdf

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