Chapter 3 – Policy, Planning, and Budgets
Collection development policy statements
· Libraries without collection development policies (CDPs) are like businesses without business plans.
· Even a library with a written policy statement suffers if the statement is not consulted, reviewed, revised, and updated.
(We should think about incorporating this suggestion into out statement - i.e. a built-in review process).
· CDPs serve as the plan for building and maintaining a collection.
· CDP is a bit like a contract between library users and library staff as to what will be acquired, for whom and at what level.
· A CDP sets out a plan for how a collection will be developed while also defining the rules directing that development.
· Policy statements strike a balance between being overly general and idealistic and being detailed and ponderous.
· For characteristics of a good policy statement:
1 Consistency
2 Flexibility – allow for adaptation to change.
3 They are guides rather than rules, so admit of discretion in their application.
4 They are written
· A policy statement defines a framework and provides parameters, but it never tells how to select or reject a specific title (personal judgment is always required).
· There are two main purposes of CDPs:
a) To inform
b) To protect
Information
· CDPs inform by presenting the libraries mission and then describing current collections in terms of strength and weaknesses and setting future goals.
· A policy “provides a theoretical overview that explains the educational, social, and cultural rationale for the development of the collection” (p. 74).
· CDPs help with budgeting by providing info for external and internal preparation and allocation.
· CDPs should demonstrate accountability by presenting a plan for careful management of fiscal resources.
· CDPs also serve as a vehicle to communicate with the library’s staff, administration and constituencies.
· Because CDPs are used to educate and train librarians responsible for collections, they should not become outdated.
· CDPs serve a particularly important function to the extent that they document and support cooperative collection development: the policy should explicitly identify all current cooperative programs in which the library participates – collection building, resource sharing, regional storage, shared contribution and access to all electronic resources.
· This last point suggests that we should try to mention connections our collection will have with other organisations/libraries (e.g. sharing of bibliographies, joint purchase of databases etc.)
Protection
· CDPs protect the library against external pressures.
· They protect intellectual freedom and prevent censorship.
· I reckon it could be a good idea to articulate a policy for these issues in our statement.
· Many library statements repeat or reference the Library Bill of Rights and other such statements on intellectual freedom.
· The policy may include the procedures for handling a complaint against material held by the library.
· This is akin to rehearsing a response to any challenge launched against the library.
· Policies can also protect by guiding the handling of gifts – the policy specifies the conditions under which the library accepts and rejects gifts.
· Libraries are advised not to appraise gifts but to refer potential donors to one or more external appraisers (good idea).
· In times of decreasing budgets and increased material costs, CDPs can help to protect the weeding, deselection and serials cancellation process. Making clear the operating principles under which these decisions are made protects the library from charges of bias and irresponsible behaviour.
· CDPs should identify issues of confidentiality by specifying the types of information that are private (e.g. donors, budgets, costs and value of materials etc.).
Audience
· CDPs serve many audiences.
· First and foremost, they serve the staff. Copies should be available for all personnel. Many libraries post their policies on the library’s website (or intranet), where they can be easily consulted.
· CDPs serve a wider audience as well. For example, policy statements can be meaningful to users, teachers and parents of students, and external funding and governing bodies.
Writing the CDP Statement
The components necessary for a good CDP:
· Purpose statement
· Background statement
· Responsibility for collection development
· Mission, goals and objectives
· Target audiences
· Budgeting and funding
· Evaluation criteria
· Format
· Governing implications
· Resources sharing
· Services
· Selection aids
· Copyright
· Intellectual freedom
· Acquisitions
· Gifts and exchange
· Collection maintenance
· Weeding
· Collection evaluation
· Policy revision
· Definition of terms and glossary
· Bibliography
· Appendixes
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