The Sir Henry Royce Foundation

The Collection

and Collection Policy

The Collection Policy of the Sir Henry Royce Foundation has been lodged with the Department of Communications and the Arts under the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme. That Collection Policy is as follows:

1. Statement of Purpose
   To collect, document and exhibit any objects whatsoever illustrating or connected with the science of mechanical engineering and especially related to the work of the late Sir F. Henry Royce.
2. Scope of the Collection
   The collection is to include such items as:
   1. The published and unpublished records of the experiments, research and work of the late Sir F. Henry Royce.
   2. Any objects whatsoever illustrating or connected with the science of mechanical engineering as it relates to Sir F. Henry Royce.
   3. Those items that illustrate the activities associated with motor car manufacture, sale and distribution.
3. Method of Acquisition:
   The Foundation can acquire objects for collection by donation, bequest, purchase or transfer subject to the following:
   1. All donations and purchases must be approved by the Trustees.
   2. All items received must be free to display, treat and where necessary deaccession.
   3. No conditional loans can be accepted, where in the opinion of the Trustees this creates a conflict with the Foundation objectives.
   4. The Trustees are required to consider the following criteria before approving acquisition of an object:
      1. Relevance
         Is the object relevant to the Foundation's aims and objectives? Does it fall within the scope of the Foundation collection policy?
      2. Documentation
         How much information is available on the object/collection? Priority is to be given to objects with associated documentation and support material.
      3. Condition
         The condition of the object must be taken into consideration when acquiring material. Badly damaged material will not normally be accepted into the collection.
      4. Storage
         Is there safe, secure storage space available to store the object?
      5. Display
         Can the object be displayed? Are there any legal or conservation restrictions that prevent the object being displayed?
         It should be noted that not all Foundation objects will normally be on permanent display.
      6. Duplications
         Objects that duplicate items already in the collection will not be accepted unless they are of superior condition andlor of historic value. In such a case the duplicate may be considered for deaccessioning.
      7. Legal Requirements
         Is there legal title to the object? Can the donor/vendor legally donate or sell the object?

4. Collection Care - Documentation, Conservation and Storage:
   The Foundation aims at all times to-maintain an effective documentation system [see link below]. All Record of Gift forms, receipts, Foundation registers and catalogue information will be kept in the Foundation files. These files will be held on Foundation premises, if possible. The Foundation aims to achieve high standards of collection, care and storage.
5. Deaccessioning and Disposal Procedures:
   An object can be deaccessioned from the collection if:
   1. It does not comply with the current collection policy of the Foundation.
   2. It is damaged beyond repair.
   3. The conservation and storage costs are beyond the means of the Foundation
   4. It is a lesser quality duplicate of an object the Foundation already owns.
   5. It lacks any supporting information to enable proper identification or to establish its relevance to the collection.
   6. The object identified for removal from the collection will come before the Trustees for consideration with close reference to the criteria stated above.
   7. Trustees, staff, volunteers, committee members and their respective families are prohibited from purchasing, or otherwise obtaining, a deaccessioned object.
   8. Any funds acquired from the sale of the deaccessioned item will be used to acquire relevant objects for the collection.
6. Loans:
   The Foundation will lend and borrow material to help meet its statement of purpose on accordance with the Trustees' criteria as established from time to time.
7. Review:
   The Foundation will review its collection policy every three years.