Collection Development Policy

"A collection development policy is a written statement of your library's intentions for building its collection. It describes the collection's strengths and weaknesses and provides guidelines for your staff. Producing one is a commitment; it takes time and careful consideration to develop a useful and relevant document. Once you have completed the document and your Library Board has approved it, it is a good idea to put your collection development policy on the World Wide Web as an example for other librarians so that it is available beyond your local community.

A collection development policy should be a living document, adaptable to change and growth. It provides guidelines that can be modified as your library's collection needs change."

Arizona State Library, 'Collection development training: About collection development policies', Arizona State Library, archives and public records, viewed 4 May 2008, http://www.lib.az.us/cdt/colldev.aspx

Tierney and Whitney (1993, p. 14) suggest a series of questions that need to be answered within the Collection Development Policy:

What is the goal of the library resource collection?

What are the objectives of the library resource collection?

Who is responsible for

• reviewing the development of the collection
• evaluating, selecting and weeding resources

What types of resources are selected for the library resource collection?

How are resources selected?

What criteria are used for the evaluation of resources?

What criteria are used for the weeding of resources?

How will the library resource centre deal with controversial materials?

• See the Education Queensland web page on dealing with challenged material.

How will the development of the collection be reviewed?

What are the collection priorities for the year?

Tierney, G & Whitney, M 1993, 'Writing a school library resource centre policy', Access, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 12-14.

Darmouth College Library Collection Management and Development Program has developed a set of Guidelines for Writing Collection Development Policies. This site also discusses the importance of Collection Dvelopment Policies, outlines the basic elements of these policies, and identifies the steps involved in writing a policy for your resource centre.

Useful information and guidelines to assist with the writing of collection development policies can be found at the Collection Development Training for Arizona Public Libraries site. Most of the information can be adapted to suit your Resource Centre's particular requirements.

Contents include:

• Why Collection Development Policies Are Important
• Elements of the Collection Development Policy
• How to Write a Collection Development Policy

Submitted by Denise Tarlinton

Last updated 4 May 2008