Head of Collections Care

Job Description

Are you a highly motivated highly experienced archival leader who has the confidence knowledge and expertise to take a leading role in the care management and preservation of Scotlands national archive Can you drive forward creative innovation leading National Records of Scotland (NRS) expert collection care team to develop and deliver key strategic initiatives building an archive service for the future If yes than this new unique and truly exciting opportunity to work with this wonderful collection could be for you.

From 12^th century charters to 21^st century datasets and everything in between the archival collections of NRS touch onevery aspect of Scottish life and tell the story of Scotlands people and history. One of Scotlands five national collections the archival collection at NRS some 38 million plus documents stretching to just over 80kms in a multiplicity of formats is a unique and important collection of both public and private records of enduring value which we preserve and make available to inform both current and future generations.

As the Head of Collection Care you will lead on the conservation and preservation of our physical archive collections playing a significant role providing strategic leadership in the development of the future shape of these services as well as managing core business activities. The post requires significant close working across all NRS archive services.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic subject matter expertise and strong leadership to the Collections Care Team covering all aspects of collection care and management: including conservation preservation and archival storage.

• Develop and direct innovation in high quality collection care services benchmarked and continually improving. Supporting and managing expert teams and cultivating excellent cross team working implementing the recommendations of the recent Conservation and Preservation Services review successfully supporting and managing the teams through the change this will require developing new policies systems and processes and establishing strategic development programmes.

• Provide leadership delivering core activities including: conservation assessment and treatment of archive material; conservation support for exhibitions loans and digitisation; and sealing of Letters Patent to Acts of the Scottish Parliament and of commissions; managing storage across the NRS estate developing methods projects and workstreams for optimising current archive storage; delivering and returning archive material to staff and public search rooms and playing a key role in document security.

• Provide subject matter expert leadership to key change projects including NRS Future of Archive Services Programme NRS Archives Environment and Treatment project the organisational archive digitisation programme and lead on our archive disaster planning and response.

• Lead and direct NRS representation on matters of collection care archive preservation and conservation. Building networks and engagement with sectoral colleagues and providing specialist advice to internal and external customers and colleagues to support the development of archival collection care practice.

• Manage all 80 linear km of current record storage at NRS with continued optimisation of the use of our current storage space.

• Lead on the development of preservation conservation and archive storage strategies for NRS and direct and support the team leaders in the development of the relevant supporting policies and procedures.