AIM Pilgrim Trust – Saffron Waldon Museum

AIM Pilgrim Trust Collections Care Audit – Saffron Waldon Museum  

The grant process was straightforward, with our main concern being able to find a conservator with a natural sciences specialism. Fortunately, our preferred conservator (Lucie Mascord ACR) was available and able to make the journey to us. The audit exceeded my expectations for results and recommendations. The nature of the storage audit was in line with my expectations, and the recommendations reflect the areas of interest that I requested with achievable targets for improvement.  

The audit also assessed the storage space more generally and provided recommendations for interim storage in view of a planned redevelopment of the Museum and best-practice recommendations for new storage based on the issues identified with the current storage space and conditions. The benefits from the audit include a range of recommendations and targets to improve the working and storage environment for our natural history collection, including short-term easy wins, ongoing changes, and medium-term opportunities for training and projects to rationalise our use of space. The audit also gave best-practice targets for future projects subject to major funding.  

Altogether, the audit’s legacy is to inform our Collection Management Plan and highlight priority areas for collections storage and care. This will make the important bird taxidermy and study skin collection more accessible to researchers and help to highlight stories of interest from around the world for future interpretation.  

James Lumbard, Natural Sciences Officer