Collections Development Policy

2. About Wellcome

Wellcome is an independent global charitable foundation supporting researchers around the world to make discoveries and build a healthier future for everyone. Founded in 1936 by Sir Henry Wellcome to deliver a philanthropic mission, the original private research library that forms part of the foundation of today’s Wellcome Collection was opened to the public in 1949.

Today, Wellcome supports science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone by investing in research, engaging people and influencing change.

By 2032, Wellcome plans to spend £16 billion supporting science and discovery research into life, health and wellbeing. Wellcome’s focus is on three worldwide health challenges: mental health, infectious disease, and climate and health. This vision and commitment is underpinned by Wellcome’s five decision-informing beliefs:

• We believe in the power of science to build a healthier future for everyone.
• We believe science has its greatest benefits through collaborative action across society.
• We believe diversity of people and expertise leads to richer understanding and more impactful discoveries.
• We believe everyone’s experience of health matters, and everyone should be able to benefit from science.
• We believe we should take on risks and tough challenges – especially when others aren’t.

3. About Wellcome Collection

Wellcome Collection is a free museum and library that brings social, cultural, historical, personal and artistic perspectives to Wellcome’s work.

Opened in London, UK in 2007 we use our collections, exhibitions and events, publications and live programmes to explore what health is and could be. Between 2007 and 2017 the Wellcome Library and Wellcome Collection were discrete services, but since 2017 both teams now work as a single organisation known as Wellcome Collection.

We represent the importance of lived experience under both the ‘Discovery’ and ‘Solutions’ arms of the One Wellcome Strategy.

Wellcome Collection’s own vision is ‘a world where everyone’s experience of health matters’. This vision is the future we want to help shape and be part of as Wellcome Collection. It puts health at the heart of everything we do. The emphasis on people’s experiences makes sure we work to appreciate different meanings of health in its many social, cultural, historical and personal contexts.

Our mission sets out how we will work to achieve our vision over the next ten years:

• Seek out opportunities for everyone to contribute different forms of knowledge and understanding towards a healthier and more equitable future.
• Give voice to a radical imagination of what health is and what it could be.
• Make meaningful connections between different perspectives and stories of health past, present and future, with the collections at the heart.

It positions the collections as an unparalleled resource for exploring the place of science and health in global histories and potential futures, alongside addressing its exclusionary, racist and ableist history.

Wellcome Collection’s priorities are the areas we want to focus on when delivering our mission:

• Create new knowledge and understanding towards our mission.
• Ensure that our collections contribute to a more equitable future.
• Develop our teams and their practice in pursuit of our mission.

4. The collections

4.1 History of the collections

Wellcome Collection is built on the foundation of collections assembled by Sir Henry Wellcome, a prolific collector of objects, visual material, archives, and books from all over the world.

From the late 1880s onwards, Sir Henry Wellcome’s collection grew through mass acquisitions from the British auction and dealer market. He purchased entire collections from other collectors, and used a network of agents in Europe, the Middle East, the Americas and South Asia. By the time he died in 1936, his collection was one of the largest in Europe. The sheer volume of acquisitions meant that practicalities mostly overwhelmed any theory of collecting and outpaced the ability to document it. This collecting took place within a colonial context as is acknowledged in The colonial roots of our collections, and our response.

When Sir Henry Wellcome died in 1936, he bequeathed the bulk of his estate, including ownership of both his pharmaceutical company and his collections, to a body of trustees, who formed the Wellcome Trust. Their primary duty was to use the income generated by the company to support “scientific research and kindred purposes”. The “Research Fund” established for this purpose embraced research in museums as well as laboratories. They were also charged with the care and maintenance of the collections through a “Research Museum and Library Fund”. This was intended to support current and future museum and library activity in relation to the history of medicine and allied sciences, including ensuring that the collections were open to researchers, students and others for education and instruction.

The pharmaceutical company did not do particularly well during subsequent decades, leaving scant resources available for library and museum activities. Almost immediately following Wellcome’s death, a major programme of collections rationalisation began and continued during the next half century. Originally attached to the company under the terms of Wellcome's will, the ownership of all the historical collections was formally transferred to the Wellcome Trust in 1960. Following this transfer the library was extensively refurbished in 1962 with the collections growing and develop with an ongoing acquisitions programme, including active collecting around modern medicine, and expanding use for research.

In 2004, the Wellcome Trust moved from the Wellcome Building into new headquarters next door at 215 Euston Road. The older building reopened in 2007, with the library now sharing space with Wellcome Collection, a new public cultural venue billed exploring the connections between medicine, life and art. In 2017 following strategic reviews of Wellcome Library and Wellcome Collection it was decided that they could best achieve their objectives by formally bringing both teams together as a single organisation known as Wellcome Collection.

4.2 The Core Collections

The collections are comprised of Core and Support Collections. We are committed to the ongoing development of the Core Collections, and their long-term retention, care and access in accordance with museum, archive and library best practice.

4.2.1 Archives and Manuscripts

We hold over 950 archive collections of personal papers and organisational records in a range of formats including audio-visual and born-digital material. The collections include those of individual scientists, clinicians, health professionals and campaigners; charities and pressure groups; research bodies; special interest groups; and healthcare providers. We also hold records that make up Wellcome’s corporate memory including the personal papers of Henry Wellcome and Silas Burroughs; business records of Burroughs Wellcome & Co; and records from Wellcome.

We hold around 21,000 manuscripts in over 50 different languages including palm leaf manuscripts, block-printed books, and paper amulets.

4.2.2 Printed and Published

Rare Materials We have significant holdings of early printed books and serials, pamphlets and ephemera, considered to be those printed or published before 1851. In addition to around 100,000 monographs (including over 600 very rare pre-1501 books, and over 5,000 16th Century books), the collection includes more than 5000 pamphlets and 2000 single sheet items.

We also have growing holdings of post-1851 printed and published material that are rare and not widely held in publicly accessible collections including donated specialist book collections, artists’ books, ephemera, pamphlets, and zines.

4.2.3 Visual and Material Culture

This collection, formerly referred to as the ‘iconographic collection’, is subject based. Material was not collected for their aesthetic, so it differs from other art collections and even art historical collections. The collection is international in character, comprising an estimated 500,000 prints, paintings, drawings, and photographs plus a small number of artistic objects and stand-alone audio-visual material spanning from the 14th Century to the present day. Today, items are acquired for their relevance to our mission.

4.2.4 Sir Henry Wellcome’s Museum Collection

Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection is a closed collection of mainly three-dimensional objects. The most significant part of this collection, comprising over 117,000 historic items relating to medical history and the history of science more generally, has been on long-term loan to the Science Museum Group since 1976. A management agreement supports the collaborative interpretation of this collection, including its use in exhibition spaces at Wellcome. Other smaller elements of the collection, including a group of Egyptian stelai and a collection of classical statuary, are on long-term loan at other institutions.

4.3 The Support Collections

The Support Collections are in current use for reference, research, exhibition, handling or other support purposes. They are more adaptable than the Core Collections and are the priority is on making these materials as accessible as possible to our priority audiences. Material is not necessarily subject to the same levels of collections management, care and conservation as the Core Collections. Material may be subject to future appraisal for long-term retention.

4.3.1 Auxiliary Material

Auxiliary Material is acquired to enhance display within exhibitions, long-term galleries, and other public spaces, or for use in object handling sessions with the public. These items are either facsimiles, of low value, or mass-produced, and are likely to be subject to wear and tear. They will be appropriately disposed of once no longer required.

4.3.2 Reserve Collection

The Reserve Collection includes items of a higher value and greater historical or artistic significance than Auxiliary Material. It includes contemporary artworks that have commissioned or purchased for display. Material is assessed on a case-by-case basis for transfer to the Core Collections.

4.3.3 Printed and Published Reference Collection

The Printed and Published Reference Collection includes approximately 15,000 journal titles, 300,000 books, and audio-visual material that has been broadcast. It is exceptionally strong in secondary sources for the history of medicine and also covers the wider medical humanities and social sciences. Another focus area is primary medical and scientific literature, including medical monographs and textbooks, pharmacopoeias and anatomical atlases, clinical and scientific journals, annual reports and grey literature.

4.3.4 Digital Reference Collection

The Digital Reference Collection contains subscription and open access digitised content from external organisations that extend and complement the collections we hold.

5. Our approach to collections development

5.1 Ethical and legal considerations

5.1.1 Due diligence

We undertake due diligence as part of collections development activity prior to acquiring any item or collection, whether by purchase, gift or bequest. This allows us to ensure that any acquisition is only made once the Head, Collections Development is satisfied that Wellcome Collection can acquire a valid title to the item or collection in question.

We follow Combating Illicit Trade: Due diligence guidelines for museums, libraries and archives on collecting and borrowing cultural material, DCMS, 2005 [PDF 354.2KB] as part of our acquisition procedures.

We do not acquire any item, specimen or collection unless we are satisfied that it has not been acquired in, or exported from, its country of origin (or any intermediate country in which it may have been legally owned) in violation of that country’s laws (for the purposes of this paragraph “country of origin” includes the United Kingdom).

We do not accept any item or collection which has been illicitly traded, in accordance with the provisions of the UNESCO 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, which the UK ratified with effect from 2002, and the Dealing in Cultural Objects (Offences) Act, 2003.

We will not acquire, by any direct or indirect means, any biological specimen or geological material that has been collected, sold or otherwise transferred in contravention of any national or international wildlife protection or natural history conservation law or treaty of the United Kingdom or any other country, except with the express consent of an appropriate outside authority. We refer to CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) as part of our due diligence process.

We do not acquire illegal subject matter unless the risks can be managed by our Access to Personal and Sensitive Information in our Collections procedures.

We ensure that both acquisition and disposal are carried out openly and with transparency.

5.1.2 Human remains

Wellcome Collection does not intend to acquire human remains and will only consider acquisition under exceptional circumstances. Any decisions around acquisition will need to prioritise clearly established provenance, ethical and legal considerations and clarity regarding how this contributes towards our mission (see Care of Human Remains Policy for full details). Any decision-making will be based on consultation with appropriate stakeholders, alongside our acquisitions due-diligence framework which will require extra scrutiny around the rationale for acquisition. Any proposal for the acquisition of human remains less than 100 years old will be subject to the legislation outlined in the Human Tissue Act 2004 and guidance from the Human Tissue Authority.

We follow relevant procedures in the 'Guidance for the care of human remains in museums' (DCMS, 2005).

We may, on occasion, acquire contemporary artworks including human tissue and bodily fluids as long as the necessary consents are in place.

Human remains in Sir Henry Wellcome’s Museum Collection on long-term loan to the Science Museum Group are managed in accordance with their policy.

5.1.3 Looting and spoliation

We use the 'statement of principles Spoliation of Works of Art during the Nazi, Holocaust and World War II period', issued for non-national museums in 1999 by the Museums and Galleries Commission.

We consult the ICOM Red Lists to help identify material that is at risk of theft and trafficking: and will not acquire material listed as being at risk.

We recognise that material previously acquired was not subject to the same due diligence procedures that we use today. We are committed to working with individuals, groups, or communities to address historical looting and spoliation.

5.1.4 Safeguarding

Wellcome Collection is committed to the safety and welfare of all those who come into contact with our work, in particular children and adults at risk. As a research body Wellcome Collection may hold images which are sensitive or explicit or deemed to be ‘indecent’. We are committed to ensuring these are held, stored, and used in a lawful and responsible way (see Access Procedures [PDF 1.1MB] for full details).

5.1.5 Codes of ethics

We recognise our responsibility to work within the parameters of relevant professional codes of ethics when considering the acquisition and disposal of material, specifically:

• Archives and Records Association Code of Ethics [PDF 284.4KB]
• International Council on Archives Code of Ethics
• Museum Association Code of Ethics
• IFLA Code of Ethics
• CILIP Code of Professional Practice for Library and Information Professionals
• Zine Librarians Code of Ethics

5.2 Significance assessments

We assess all material that is under consideration for acquisition to the Core Collections and keep a record of these assessments in our collection files. More detailed assessments of significance are carried out before the acquisition of large collections or the purchase of expensive items.

5.3 Responsibility for collecting

We recognise our responsibility, when acquiring additions to the Core Collections, to ensure that care of collections, collections information arrangements and use of collections will meet the requirements of the relevant accreditation standard (for either museums or archives), SPECTRUM Primary Procedures, advice and guidance issued by The National Archives, and policy statements issued by CILIP.

Overall responsibility for acquisition and disposal is held by Wellcome Trust’s Board of Governors. Responsibility for approving policies has been delegated to Wellcome Collection’s Leadership Team. In accordance with Wellcome’s formal scheme of delegation, responsibility for agreeing acquisitions and disposals for the Core Collections is delegated to the Head, Collections Development who oversees the work of the Collections Development Team.

Material is acquired for the Core Collections by the Collections Development Team who use their judgement on the suitability of material (see Section 6). We consider the storage, conservation and processing needs of items and collections before the point of acquiring them in consultation with colleagues, particularly the Conservation & Collections Care Team and the Collections Information Team. We also consult people with relevant expertise when necessary to ensure that the implications of each acquisition have been properly considered.

The Collections Development Team has discretion to acquire material up to the limit (as set by the Head, Collections Development) from the departmental acquisitions budget.

We acquire material to help support Wellcome in achieving its charitable objectives. This includes using standard transfer agreements for gifts and seeking the transfer of copyright where possible or obtaining a broad copyright licence. Material is no longer accepted for the Core Collections on loan.

Where a gift or bequest is offered subject to conditions outside of our standard terms it is referred to the Associate Director, Collections & Digital. This only applies to material that contributes to our vision (see Section 'About Wellcome Collection').

Acquisitions outside the current stated policy will only be made in exceptional circumstances.

5.4 Methods of collecting

We acquire material for the collections through a range of methods:

Core Collections

• Targeted, proactive collecting approaches to organisations and individuals identified as priorities.
• Responding to offers of donated material.
• Monitoring material available for purchase from specialist dealers and at auction and responding to offers of material for sale.
• Bequest.
• Internal transfers of physical and digital material directly from staff or teams within Wellcome or through the Records Management system.
• Transfer from the Support Collections using defined criteria.
• Commissioning.

Support Collections

• Purchase from booksellers and other reputable sellers.
• Donated material.
• Bequest.
• Internal transfers of material directly from departments within Wellcome.
• Collecting from events.
• Commissioning.
• Subscription.

5.5 Documenting the collections

We maintain a hybrid system of order records, accession records and collections files for the Core Collections, as a tamper-proof record of all accessioned items or collections as per our procedures (see Collections Information Policy for minimum documentation standards).

We attempt to maintain contact with all regular donors, suppliers and creators of material to the Core Collections. We maintain a register of donors, suppliers and creators to assist with this. This register is managed in accordance with data protection legislation.

5.6 Collecting policies of other organisations

We take account of the collecting policies of other organisations collecting in the same or related areas or subject fields. We aim to collaborate rather than compete with other collecting organisations to ensure that material relating to health is located in the most appropriate repository. We will consult with other repositories where conflicts of interest may arise or to define areas of specialism, in order to avoid unnecessary duplication and waste of resources.

We take into account the collecting policies of a range of repositories including but not confined to the following:

• London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
• The Medical Royal Colleges.
• Museum of Military Medicine.
• Medical Research Council.
• The members of Research Libraries UK.
• British Film Institute.
• British Library.
• Science Museum Group.

6. Acquisition

6.1 Collecting principles

We develop and preserve the collections in support of our vision of a world where everyone’s experience of health matters. We endeavour to maximise the reach and impact of the collections amongst current and new audiences. We also want the collections to support great ideas about health, not just today, but into the future, by documenting current activity and preserving historical material. We recognise that good collections development goes beyond collecting and includes building communities of practice, supporting others, and collaborating.

We take a holistic view of our collections and adopt a consistent approach to making decisions about collection development and management. We value the extraordinary diversity of material under our care and recognise that this requires us to be flexible and adaptable. The collections are, however, much more than the sum of their parts. We use common frameworks for assessing significance and prioritising activity and make individual decisions based on knowledge and understanding of the whole.

The collections are unique and distinctive in their range and variety, and we want them to remain so. We will continue to value the varying content, context and materiality of our holdings.

6.2 Actively developing the collections

We actively seek out material which enhances the breadth and depth of our holdings, provides historical perspectives on contemporary health concerns and increases the diversity of voices represented in the collections.

We draw on Wellcome’s understanding of health across the funding portfolio to identify suitable themes for active collecting and we experiment with different collecting methodologies to document health related issues including Wellcome’s priority areas of mental health, infectious disease, and climate and health.

6.3 Responsive collecting

In addition to strategic collection development, we continue to make incremental additions to our existing holdings, including:

• Material of significant research potential or cultural value that builds on existing collection strengths in relation to health.
• Material closely associated by provenance with existing collections, including relevant accruals to archive collections.
• Variant editions of printed and published rare materials, significant for reasons such as important revisions of the text, commentaries, annotations, context, provenance and materiality.
• Regular additions to the printed and published reference collection, in order to ensure it is of value to our current audience.
• Material on subjects related to health (e.g. sociology, biology, botany, zoology and veterinary medicine) which are acquired selectively where they intersect with human health.
• Material on subjects which support our exhibitions and engagement.

6.4 Material considered out of scope

We consider the following categories or types of material to be out of scope and they will not normally be acquired.

6.4.1 General

• Material that poses a risk to the collections and/or our staff.
• Material for which the appropriate permissions have not been acquired and/or the approved legal and ethical standards have not or cannot be followed.
• Material on which bespoke arrangements are placed, so it cannot be deployed in support of our charitable mission within what we would consider to be a reasonable time-frame (see the Access Procedures [PDF 1.1MB] for more detail).
• Material which we do not have the correct storage facilities or expertise to properly care for.
• Material which we do not have the facilities or resources to make available to researchers.
• Material that is lacking sufficient contextual material or identifying information to allow it to support research.

6.4.2 Archives and manuscripts

• Public Records as defined by the Public Records Act, except in exceptional circumstances, those presented with the cognisance of The National Archives.
• The records of organisations that have sufficient infrastructure and capacity, including super major charities, such that they might reasonably be expected to care for, and provide research access to, their own archival heritage.
• Patient records from GP practices.
• Records relating solely to a particular geographical region or area (these will generally be referred to an appropriate repository).
• Research data sets including longitudinal studies.
• Semi-current records still in use by the originating organisation or individual.
• Records from individuals who are affiliated or closely linked to another University or organisation, including recipients of Wellcome funding.
• Records with stronger links to other repositories especially where part of a collection is already held in another archive repository.
• Archive collections for sale.

6.4.3 Printed and published rare materials

• Published or printed items which are available and easily accessible in other libraries, unless they fill obvious gaps in our coverage.
• Duplicates or variant editions unless these contain significant annotations, revisions, provenance or materiality.

6.4.4 Visual and material culture

• Duplicate copies of prints that are not parts of larger collections.
• Biological or geological specimens/material.
• Archaeological artefacts.
• Objects additional to Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection, on long-term loan out, which is a closed collection.

7. Collections review, appraisal and disposal

7.1 Reviewing the collections

We operate a rolling programme of collections review, across the Core and Support Collections regardless of format. This is linked to our work on acquisitions and disposal to ensure the development of a strong and relevant collection.

We undertake collection reviews with varying scopes and extents. We use collection reviews to ensure that the collections support our vision, that we are making the best use of our storage space, that we can effectively assess the conservation needs of the collection, and that we have proper records relating to the collections.

We operate a formal review process that clearly identifies the scope of each review. A collection review will not primarily be driven by storage requirements or cost-saving. The outcome of review, which may lead to rationalisation and disposal, will not reduce the quality or significance of the collections and will result in a more useable, well-managed collection.

We take account of changes in the external landscape, such as the digitisation of resources and collaborative print initiatives, during any collections review process.

7.2 Appraisal of material

We may identify and remove unwanted items from a larger body of material as part of the acquisition or cataloguing process. This is often to remove duplicate material, but may also involve removing material that is outside the scope of our collecting or which is not suitable for long-term preservation.

Our appraisal statement is made clear when accepting donations and is included in our collection principles as part of the donation paperwork.

Records in any format created by Wellcome are subject to retention schedules. These identify which records should be transferred to the Wellcome Trust archive for appraisal and when. Appraisal of records is done in consultation with originating departments when possible.

7.3 Disposal principles

Our disposal statement is made clear when accepting donations and is included in our collection principles as part of the donations paperwork.

The cost of the disposal process is taken into account and offset against any expected benefits, financial or space.

Material may be removed from the collections for a number of reasons. The main ones are:

• It does not meet our collecting criteria.
• It could find a better audience if it was housed elsewhere.
• The wider landscape has changed since acquisition.
• It poses a risk to the collections and/or our staff.
• It is damaged and its rarity does not merit repair.
• It has been requested for return to a community or country of origin.
• It has been requested to be removed from our collections by its maker.

We undertake an appropriate level of consultation for material under consideration for disposal which will depend upon the scale and scope of the material. This consultation will involve, where appropriate, relevant internal teams, collaborators, relevant individuals, organizations or communities, and users of the materials.

A designated member of staff will be responsible for each disposal and will manage all enquiries relating to that disposal. In the case of large and/or culturally significant disposal, work will be done in consultation with Wellcome Collection’s communications team and a written communications statement about the disposal will be available.

We ensure that we have the authority to dispose by establishing that we have a full legal title to any property proposed for disposal and that we have authority to dispose under the terms of any donations, benefactions or grants concerning funded material. If items were acquired with the aid of an external funding organisation then the original grant will be repaid along with a proportion of any proceeds from the sale.

We keep appropriate records of all disposals from the collections. Deaccessioned published and printed items are marked as such, so that the fact of their legitimate sale and their provenance are clearly recorded in the item itself.

7.4 Disposal from the Core Collections

We follow disposal procedures for the Core Collections with reference to the SPECTRUM Procedure for deaccessioning and disposal, guidance from The National Archives on deaccessioning and disposal, and CILIP’s Disposals Policy for Rare Books and Manuscripts. The process is documented, open and transparent.

Material from the Core Collections may be disposed of by gift, sale or destruction (in the case of an item too badly damaged or deteriorated to be of any use for the purposes of the collections or for reasons of health and safety). In line with Museums Association guidance, we prioritise ethical transfer within the public domain and reuse of material whenever possible.

We only take the decision to dispose of material from the Core Collections after full consideration of the reasons for disposal. Factors including public benefit, the implications for the collections and collections held by other organisations collecting the same material or in related fields will be considered. Expert advice will be obtained and the views of relevant parties such as donors, researchers, local and source communities and others served by Wellcome Collection will also be sought.

A decision to dispose of items or collections from the Core Collections, by whatever means, is the responsibility of Wellcome Collection Leadership Team acting on the advice of professional staff and not of a single member of staff acting alone.

We do not undertake disposal motivated primarily by financial reasons or the lack of physical space. Material will not be disposed of from the Core Collections for the sole purpose of raising funds. Any monies received by Wellcome’s Board of Governors from the disposal of material from the Core Collections will be applied solely and directly for the benefit of the Core Collections. This normally means the purchase of further acquisitions. In exceptional cases, improvements relating to the care of collections in order to meet or exceed accreditation requirements relating to the risk of damage to and deterioration of the collections may be justifiable. Any monies received in compensation for the damage, loss or destruction of items will be applied in the same way. Advice on those cases where the monies are intended to be used for the care of collections will be sought from Arts Council England.

With the approval of Wellcome's Board of Governors and Wellcome Collection’s Leadership we will assess requests to return human remains or other collection items to a country or people of origin. We will take such decisions on a case-by-case basis, taking into account all available legal, ethical and best-practice guidance. This includes “Guidance for the care of human remains in museums” issued by DCMS in 2005 and the Museums Association guide for Supporting Decolonisation in Museums.

7.5 Disposal from the Support Collections

Disposal of material from the Support Collections is not subject to the same level of documentation as for material from the Core Collections. However, the process is still documented, open and transparent.

7.6 Themes and priorities for deselection and disposal

There are items in the collections which would not normally be considered for disposal. These include those in our foundation collections which were purchased by Sir Henry Wellcome and which were not disposed of during previous reviews of the collection. Requests to return material to people or countries of origin are an exception.

We regularly deselect items of which there are multiple copies in the printed and published reference collection. We do, however, pay particular attention to alleged duplicates in the early and rare book collection where a closer inspection may reveal differences between copies, or where provenance and association with a collection are significant. We will not normally dispose of rare printed items with copy specific annotations, significant known provenance associations, bindings or illustrations of particular interest.

We constantly monitor the digital reference collection to ensure that it supports our vision and do not renew subscriptions which do not support that vision, are not well used, or do not offer value for money.

Our current priority for disposal from the Core Collections are:

• Items or collections which do not support our vision and which we would not normally accept if we were to be offered them today, such as patient records from GP practices.
• Material solely connected to a particular geographic area.
• Collections or items containing substances that are harmful or hazardous.
• Collections or items containing substances that require separate licences, such as controlled substances.
• Culturally sensitive items which have been requested for return by communities or countries of origin.

8. Policy history and review

• Version 1.0 (21 March 2018) Approved by Wellcome Collection Leadership Team – Original Policy.
• Version 1.1 (24 August 2023) Approved by Wellcome Collection Leadership Team – Amendment to remove reference to acquiring human remains under 100 years old.
• Version 2.0 (9 October 2025) Approved by Strategy & Impact Committee – Updated in line with strategy.

Written By: Head, Collections Development

Policy sponsor: Director, Wellcome Collection

Functional lead: Associate Director, Collections & Digital

Distribution: Workday internal policies and wellcomecollection.org policy documents page

Requirement: Museum Accreditation, Archive Service Accreditation, Internal Audit

Responsibility for preparation: Head, Collections Development

Responsibility for review: Head, Collections Development

Review schedule: 3 years

Next review date: October 2028