Chapter 3—Report on performance

Key performance indicator:
Be acknowledged as a pre-eminent and innovative cultural institution

School visitation

School visitation remained strong in 2009–10. The 81,079 visitors represented a healthy increase following a small drop in 2008–09 due to restrictions related to redevelopment work. The two most heavily booked school programs were Our Voices, Our Choices (secondary students) and Who’s the Boss? (upper primary students). Both programs use RFID technology as a way for the students to engage with the exhibition content and make decisions about their learning pathways. The Franklin River Debate for primary students is also a very popular program, as it uses a workshop environment as well as a heritage chamber experience. The new Decisions 3Sixty° decision theatre and the Hands on Democracy program have proved very successful with students and teachers, but their spatial requirements dictate that they serve a smaller percentage of our overall student numbers.

Visitor satisfaction

In the second half of 2009–10, exit surveys were reintroduced to establish a benchmark for visitor satisfaction. Surveys in the January–March quarter reported a satisfaction level of 85 per cent. However, overall general visitor satisfaction fell to 83 per cent in the April–June quarter, perhaps due to the major refurbishment work to the front steps in May and June. Despite this, visitor satisfaction with the exhibitions, displays and interpreted spaces produced a very high overall average rating of 86 –June 2010 period.

Overall, ratings of the museum exceeded the level required to meet visitors’ expectations. A high proportion of visitors, 65 per cent, rated their experience as ‘better than expected’. ‘Likelihood to recommend the museum to others’ was also high, at 88 per cent.

Most visitors, 75 per cent, agreed that their knowledge of Australian democracy increased. A particularly high proportion of visitors aged under 40 years, 89 per cent, reported that they had increased their knowledge, compared to 70 per cent of over 40s.

In 2010–11, visitor satisfaction surveys will include a representative sample over the whole year.

What visitors said they most enjoyed

Being able to interact with exhibitions and take in information at my own pace. Exhibitions were very clearly presented.

I most enjoyed seeing how Prime Ministers got around and did their business. I liked the presentation of the Democracy.

Being able to have a look and see where our democracy grew up. I liked being able to stand in the House of Reps saying “I object” just for fun.

Visitor experience

In 2009–10, the agency provided a coherent visitor experience related to the past, present and future of Australian democracy. The remaining aspects of the new, long-term exhibitions that were introduced in late 2009–10 with the launch of the Museum of Australian Democracy were completed and introduced, and the operation of all new programs was consolidated. A new program of distinctive temporary exhibitions, travelling exhibitions and events, reflecting the new aims and interpretive themes of the museum and designed to meet the needs and learning styles of a wide range of audience segments, was also introduced.

Our comprehensive program of relevant, engaging and effective activities contributed to achieving high visitor satisfaction levels.

Exhibitions

The objectives of exhibitions activities for 2009–10 were to:

• undertake a program of temporary exhibitions that reflects the aims and themes of the Museum of Australian Democracy
• continue development and management of a travelling exhibitions program with a strong regional focus, and to re-brand existing travelling exhibitions in a manner that is consistent with museum branding
• further develop the agency’s capability to create, maintain and tour exhibitions.

Temporary exhibitions

The temporary exhibitions program has previously been based on an annual temporary exhibition developed in house, supplemented by appropriate exhibitions sourced from external bodies and, where suitable, shorter return seasons of the museum’s travelling exhibitions. In 2009–10, however, the program was revised to focus during the first half of the year on the new, long-term exhibitions and visitor experiences launched in May 2009.

Table 4 (page 29) details the temporary exhibitions hosted onsite in 2009–10.

Table 4 Temporary exhibitions, 2009–10

Title	Description	Dates
Put Yourself in the Picture	An interactive exhibition developed for the launch of the Museum of Australian Democracy. The exhibition encouraged visitors to make a badge that expressed their ideas for the future for display in the exhibition.	1 July 2009 to 29 October 2009
Billy Hughes at War	This exhibition told the story of Prime Minister Billy Hughes’ experience of World War I. It was developed in partnership with the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.	1 July 2009 to 29 October 2009
Beyond Reasonable Drought	This refreshed exhibition featured 80 photographs documenting the impact of the drought on Australian communities. It was developed in association with the Many Australian Photographers Group.	1 November 2009 to 14 February 2010
Marnti Warajanga—we’re travelling	This is a joint project with the Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre and photographer Tobias Titz. The exhibition features 34 portraits of people from the Pilbara who bear witness in their own words to momentous historical movements and reflect on their ongoing work for social and political change at a community and national level. (See case study on pages 38–39 for further details.)	25 February 2010 to 20 February 2011
Uncensored Conversations	An exhibition of nine portraits of speakers who featured in the three events held in the Uncensored Conversations public relations campaign in 2010.	11 May 2010 to 30 June 2010

Travelling exhibitions

The travelling exhibition program is a means of delivering outreach activities, particularly to regional areas, and of providing cooperative programming to organisations with similar aims or audiences.

In 2009–10, the suite of travelling exhibitions comprised three exhibitions, as follows.

• Beyond Reasonable Drought was refreshed with images to increase the representation of Tasmania and the Northern Territory, and to acknowledge recent significant rain and the effect it has had on Australians’ perception of the drought. The exhibition was displayed at Old Parliament House and is scheduled to tour further in 2010–11.
• Mrs Prime Minister—Public Image, Private Lives was re-branded and updated with new elements relating to Ms Thérèse Rein, wife of former Prime Minister the Hon Kevin Rudd MP. The exhibition was displayed at the Chifley Home in Bathurst, the Whitlam Institute (University of Western Sydney), and the Alfred Deakin Prime Ministerial Library, Geelong.
• Billy Hughes at War was exhibited at the Chifley Interpretation Centre, Bathurst.

Temporary exhibitions developed for the museum are now also being adapted for travelling at the end of their onsite season. Each exhibition is intended to have a travelling life of up to five years. Preparations are underway to adapt and tour Marnti Warajanga—we’re travelling from 2011.

Interest in the travelling exhibitions continues to be strong, and organisations in several states and some Australian diplomatic posts have expressed interest in hosting them. A new section has been developed on the agency’s website to promote the travelling exhibitions and streamline tour planning.

In 2009–10 onsite and travelling exhibitions reached 112,766 viewers, as shown in Table 5.

Table 5 Attendance at exhibitions, by location, 2008–09 and 2009–10

Type of exhibition	Number of visitors		Proportion of total
	2008–09	2009–10	2008–09	2009–10
Onsite	102,864	107,278	90.4%	95.1%
Travelling offsite	10,945	5,488	9.6%	4.9%
Total	113,808	112,766	100.0%	100.0%
Temporary onsite	183,756	145,237	94.4%	96.4%
Travelling offsite	10,945	5,488	5.6%	3.6%
Total	194,701	150,725	100.0%	100.0%

All travelling exhibitions had reduced availability during 2009–10 while they were refreshed and brought into line with current museum branding.

Permanent exhibitions

Further developmental work was carried out on the museum’s permanent exhibitions during the year.

The Living Democracy—The Power of the People exhibition , which was previewed at the ‘Museum of Australian Democracy’ launch on 9 May 2009, opened in full on 14 August 2009. It explores how Australians use their voice in our democracy, what inspires them and how they can ’s running.

A new temporary panel was installed in late June 2010 in the Prime Ministers of Australia exhibition for the twenty-seventh prime minister, the Hon Julia Gillard MP. This exhibition aims to generate an understanding of the people who have held the position of Prime Minister of Australia. It displays audiovisual material, text, images and objects relating to each prime minister.

Extensive work took place on an enhanced online version of the Australian Democracy—more than 2000 years in the making exhibition timeline for the museum’s website. Titled Exploring Democracy: Australian Journeys through Time and Space, this website covers selected events, places and people that help to tell the complex story of Australian democracy. The online interactive map features a series of themed trails highlighting places associated with the history of Australian democracy. Themes covered by the trails include Prime Ministers, Indigenous Rights, Immigrants’ Rights, Employment and Workers, the National Capital, and Australian Democracy at War. The new version of the exhibition will be launched in early 2010–11.

Operational capability

The museum’s long-term, temporary and travelling exhibitions require a significant operational capability to develop, maintain and tour them. In 2009–10, that capability was enhanced by:

• development and implementation of onsite monitoring, incident rectification and management procedures to enable the effective operation of both long-term and temporary exhibitions
• implementation and continued development of a low-cost, low-maintenance system for managing and processing travelling exhibitions
• improvement of travelling exhibition infrastructure, including storage and equipment
• reviews of contracts and exhibition documentation.

Interpretation and community learning

Enhancements to interpretive activities during the year included:

• completing the final major developments associated with the Museum of Australian Democracy initiatives, the Opposition Party Room and Leader of the Opposition’s Office, which were officially opened on 10 May 2010 (see case study on pages 34–35)
• installing in Kings Hall a captioned film of the ‘Welcome to Country’ segment from the 9 May 2009 Museum of Australian Democracy opening ceremony
• refining visitor orientation and wayfinding systems through ongoing development of directional and interpretive signage and the visitor guide and map
• preparing and implementing a new 30-minute introductory tour featuring the museum highlights (House of Representatives and Senate chambers, Kings Hall, Senate Opposition Party Room, Government Party Room and Australian Democracy—more than 2000 years in the making) for delivery by volunteers
• introducing the ‘MoADventure Trail’, an activity designed to encourage families to explore the heritage treasures of the building and each of the democracy exhibitions, including the children’s exhibition, Hands on Democracy. The trail is a multilayered learning tool suitable for a wide range of ages and developmental levels. It provides a learning experience with clear directions, age-appropriate graphics and opportunities for discussion and deeper investigation, and takes 30–45 minutes. Upon completion, children receive a fridge magnet featuring a democracy ‘D’.

Key activities to support the interpretation and community learning functions of the agency included:

• monitoring the effectiveness of the new interpretive activities to ensure maximum visitor satisfaction
• developing an implementation schedule for the Old Parliament House Interpretation Plan 2008–2013 to guide interpretive development over the next three years—a photographic record of the main and upper floor interpretive spaces was commissioned to assist with the development of the schedule
• developing a community learning strategy to increase the museum’s community engagement, particularly with groups that are not typical museum visitors—the strategy will be introduced by late 2010, and will improve the accessibility of the collection
• preparing a presentation manual which will guide the ongoing maintenance and development of interpreted spaces.

Staff also worked to develop networks and partnerships with relevant institutions and academics to both raise the museum’s profile and assist in the development of interpretation and community learning products and programs.

The museum participated in the Canberra and Regional Heritage Festival, presenting two events:

• Hidden Kitchen Treasures, a behind-thescenes tour of the old kitchens of Old Parliament House, on 11 April 2010
• Hidden Treasures, a tour of the museum’s onsite acquisitions and storage facilities, on 18 April 2010.

Heritage ACT’s evaluation session, in which the groups that presented programs for the festival could review the event and make suggestions for the future, was hosted by the museum.

Events

The museum presents a program of public events to complement its other programs and to help build awareness of its role and activities, both locally and nationally. The program has achieved high levels of participant

Fourteen events held in 2009–10 supported new exhibitions, launched newly interpreted spaces and promoted the museum both to the public and to key stakeholders. The events were attended by a total of 1,833 people.

Some of the events held to launch new exhibitions and activities follow.

• The Living Democracy exhibition was launched on 14 August 2009, attended by members of the community whose stories are told in the exhibition
• Marnti Warajanga—we’re travelling was launched on 25 February 2010, attended by members of the Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre, who had been involved in the exhibition’s development (see exhibition case study at pages 38–39)
• the newly interpreted Opposition Party Room and Leader of the Opposition’s Office were officially opened on 10 May 2010 by Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig. The Hon Simon Crean MP, former President of the Senate the Hon Margaret Reid, Australian Prime Ministers Centre Fellow Dr Norman Abjorensen and Advisory Council Chair Mr William McInnes also took part in the event. (see exhibition case study at pages 34–35).

The museum also welcomed visitors to popular public events, including:

• a public forum held in the House of Representatives chamber on 26 February 2010, featuring photographer Mr Tobias Titz, curator Ms Merryn Gates and members of the Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre discussing the development of Marnti Warajanga—we’re travelling
• Uncensored Conversations, a series of three free public events held in Kings Hall, featuring prominent Australians discussing their personal stories in relation to topical subjects affecting and affected by democracy. The events were informal and engaging, providing the opportunity for members of the public to question and converse with the speakers. The events were facilitated by broadcaster Ms Angela Catterns and the subjects and speakers were:
  • 11 May 2010—Immigration, asylum seekers and refugees: What is the real impact? Speakers: Mr Les Murray (sports commentator and former refugee) and Mr Abdalla Ahmed (President of the Australian–Somali
  • 27 May 2010—Involvement or intrusion: Where is the line for our government? Speakers: Rev Tim Costello (Chief Executive Officer of World Vision Australia) and Mr Stephen Kenny (former barrister for Mr David Hicks)
  • 15 June 2010—Freedom of speech and censorship: How free are we? Speakers: Dr Julianne Schultz (Professor at the Centre for Public Culture and Ideas at Griffith University) and members of hip-hop group, The Herd.

The agency partnered several organisations in events held at

• after the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association became tenants in the building, a commemoration was held on the front steps on 12 March 2010 and an accompanying function was hosted
• the Department of Immigration and Citizenship held its inaugural Address on Immigration and Citizenship in the House of Representatives Chamber on 17 March 2010
• the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet launched Ahead of the Game: Blueprint for Reform of Australian Government Administration in Kings Hall on 29 March 2010, with a panel discussion about the future direction of the Australian Public Service. The panel included Mr Terry Moran, Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Chair of the Australian Public Service Reform Advisory Group
• the museum hosted the reunion and annual general meeting of the Association of Former Members of the Parliament of Australia in May 2010. Former members of parliament attended a forum held in the Senate Chamber and met in the Senate Committee Rooms.

Planning for potential future events, including performances, public forums and exhibition-related events, was also undertaken.

Schools learning

Throughout the year, both onsite and online education programs were delivered for students and teachers from around Australia. Attendance at onsite programs was strong, with 81,079 visiting students and teachers—an increase of 12 per cent from 2009–09.

There was a strong focus on refining and consolidating the programs that were introduced as part of the museum redevelopment, with staff receiving extensive training.

Onsite program evaluation by visiting teachers and students was carried out through an evaluation of the Who’s the Boss? program conducted in May– June 2010. Who’s the Boss? was chosen as the most booked schools program; it was introduced in May 2009 and is delivered to students in years 5–8. The exit survey of 187 teachers reflected high levels of satisfaction at or above 95 per cent; other findings are shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6 Results of school program evaluation, 2009–10

Text description of Figure 6

New onsite school programs introduced in 2009–10 included the radio frequency identification (RFID) project. This project will enable students to explore and interrogate the content and activities in the exhibitions with the assistance of technology. Further details are in the case study on page 42.

Several online programs were developed or reviewed and implemented during the year, including:

• the Franklin River Debate (reviewed and rebranded)
• the Old Parliament House Resource Kit (reviewed and rebranded)
• Getting it Together: From Colony to Federation online packages
• National History Challenge 2009: Triumph over Adversity.

Other education activities included:

• conducting professional development opportunities for teachers, and familiarisation sessions on our new programs and exhibitions for local primary and secondary teachers
• ongoing involvement and participation in the Museums Australia Education National Network’s response to the draft national history curriculum
• presentations at the History Teachers’ Association of Australia and History Teachers’ Association of Victoria conferences (July 2009)
• co-presentations with other museum educators at a Museums Australia National Conference on how museums link to the national curriculum (September 2009)
• ongoing involvement in hosting civics and citizenship programs, including the ACT Schools Constitutional Convention (September 2009), the International River Health Conference (October 2009) and the National Schools Constitutional Convention (March 2010).

The agency continued its valuable association with the National History Challenge, sponsoring a category in Celebrations, Memories and History, the 2010 event. The participants, students from years 5–12, were required to focus on one key event or issue related to an Australian prime minister and include evidence from a primary document to support their entry. Entries were able to be submitted as research essays, performances, three-dimensional models or multimedia. The challenge commenced in April and judging will take place in September 2010.

A Western Australian student, Mr Dale Atkinson, won the category that the museum sponsored in the 2009 National History Challenge.

Volunteer program

Approximately 107 volunteers continued to provide invaluable assistance to staff and visitors, leading tours or undertaking research. Their involvement was particularly beneficial in ensuring visitors’ satisfaction with their experience. Volunteers provided guided tours and interpretations of the chambers, exhibition spaces and other public areas within the building.

The focus of activities was on the development and implementation of new tours reflecting the Museum of Australian Democracy programs. Volunteers were also trained in the delivery of an additional, newly developed visitor tour in late 2009.

In May 2010, Dr George McLean, representing the museum, was awarded the ACT Volunteer of the Year Award in the arts and heritage sector for 2010.

Collection development

The museum seeks to develop a collection that documents the establishment and growth of Australian democracy, with a strong focus on Australian parliamentary history. The museum has a particular interest in Australian political ephemera and material relating to political movements that were influenced by Australia or in which Australians played a part. Display items which put Australia’s history as a democracy into a global context are also a particular priority.

Notable acquisitions during 2009–10 included:

• a rare copy of the 1866 print Governor Davey’s Proclamation to the Aborigines, 1816—mistitled through a historical error, the print depicts Governor George Arthur’s proclamation to the Aborigines circa 1828–30, which sought to convey the idea of equality under the law through pictograms
• a unique collection of sketches executed in the House of Representatives in 1982 by Mr Tom Thompson
• material relating to the abolition of the slave trade in Britain and the debate over slavery in the United States, including the broadside Description of a Slave Ship (1789), considered one of the most influential pieces of political propaganda ever printed
• important seventeenth and eighteenth century British political manifestos.

As required, all proposed new collection items were appropriately assessed by the Acquisitions Com mittee and approved by the delegate.

Development of the museum’s oral history program continued. This included the Old Parliament House Political and Parliamentary Oral History Project, a cooperative project with the National Library of Australia which focused on former parliamentarians. In 2009–10, 23 interviews were recorded as part of this project—seven by the museum and 16 by the library.

Table 6 (page 45) lists the main acquisitions, donations and oral history recordings that contributed to the growth of the collection in 2009–10.

Table 6 New collection items, 2009–10

Type	Items
Acquisitions: Australian political and parliamentary history	an engraved portrait of WC Wentworth a first edition of the Proceedings of a General Court Martial … for the trial of Lieut.-Col. Geo. Johnston … on a charge of mutiny for deposing … William Bligh (London, 1811) a copy of the Narrative of the Sufferings of T. Palmer and W. Skirving (Cambridge, 1797), and various other publications relating to the trials of the ‘Scottish Martyrs’, transported to Australia for political offences in the 1790s a copy of the Victorian Gold Regulations (Melbourne 1854), the publication of which led to the Eureka uprising a copy of the rare 1866 hand-coloured lithograph entitled Governor Davey’s Proclamation to the Aborigines, 1816 Australian Politicians (1887), a watercolour by WJ Wadham, 1887, showing two unknown men speaking in a bush pub to a group of other men a trade token produced in Melbourne by bookseller EW Cole, c. 1890, promoting racial equality a ceramic beaker commemorating Australian Federation, 1901, with portraits of Queen Victoria, Edmund Barton, Henry Parkes, and Australian and British soldiers, and a photogravure of Tom Roberts’ painting of the opening of the first federal parliament in 1901 a range of small items which used the terms ‘Federal’ and ‘Commonwealth’ in their nomenclature a bust of the then Governor-General Lord Hopetoun, c.1901, by an unknown artist, and a collection of photographs of Federation Arches in Sydney and Melbourne and other scenes of the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901 an advertising postcard for a Sydney photography studio featuring a previously unknown portrait of Sir George Reid in his time as High Commissioner in London a collection of 33 original cartoons of prime ministers and other politicians by Patrick Cook, Bruce Petty, Les Tanner, Frank Benier, ‘Eyre Jr’ and others, dating from the early 1910s to the 1980s. An album of 42 photographs by Joseph Brokenshire showing scenes during the Broken Hill lockout of 1909, a key event in the history of the Australian labour movement a gold key presented to Joseph Lyons when he opened St Gregory’s School during his visit to the United Kingdom in 1937 a copy of the 1942 limited edition of Raffaello Carboni’s The Eureka Stockade, signed by HV Evatt, who wrote the introduction a jigsaw puzzle showing John Curtin and United States President Franklin D Roosevelt, surrounded by military personnel, 1942 a photograph of Malcolm Fraser with other Magdalen College freshmen, 1949, and a sketch of Mr Fraser in Montmartre, c. 1950 a satirical sketch by Noel Counihan showing ‘Labor Unity’ throwing ‘the Coalition’ down the front steps of Old Parliament House, 1953. a photograph by David Moore of United States President Lyndon B Johnson and Harold Holt at the Canberra Airport, 1966 a photograph by Mervyn Bishop of Gough Whitlam pouring soil into the hand of traditional history landowner Vincent Lingiari, 1975 a collection of 30 pencil sketches of parliamentarians and parliamentary officials by Tom Thompson, drawn in the House of Representatives in 1982 nine posters and a board game produced in the 1980s by Redback Graphix—mostly commissioned works urging Indigenous Australians to enrol and vote in elections three photographs by the Indigenous Queensland photographer Leah King-Smith from her series Patterns of Connection, 1991: Untitled #2 (Queen Rose), Untitled #3 (William Barak), Untitled #9 (Geelong Tribe) Worn Breastplates, a series of nine pieces of jewellery made by Andrea Fisher, a young Murri artist whose practice, which incorporates jewellery, photography and installation, reflects Aboriginal history and culture and seeks to reframe and reclaim the past a range of other books, pamphlets, posters and other ephemera on Australian political history, both current and retrospective, acquired for the research collection.
Acquisitions: the journey of democracy	a copy of the first English edition of Machiavelli’s The Prince (London, 1640) a copy of the Declaration from the several respective regiments in the Army, to all free-born Commons within the realme of England (London, 1647). The declaration demands equal representation in parliament, elections every two years, the sovereignty of parliament over all other persons and powers, and equality for all under the law a copy of the Eikon Basilike (London, 1649), the account of Charles I’s last days co-written by the king and published days after his execution. This copy is stamped with the arms of Charles II, and is believed to have been given by him to one of his supporters, possibly after 1660 a musket and sword typical of those used during the American revolutionary period, both c. 1760 and of colonial assembly, for display in the permanent exhibition in the section on the American Revolution several English trade tokens of the 1790s, for and against movements of political change a copy of the broadside Description of a Slave Ship, London, 1789, an iconic symbol of the anti-slavery movement in Britain and the United States, and the first translation into visual form of ideas behind the cause of the first peaceful mass movement for political change in British history, a slave hire tag, and a toothbrush issued to a soldier in the first black regiment raised to fight for the Union in the American Civil War, with other civil war and anti-slavery material. a copy of the first issue of the broadside Declaration of Rights, without which no Englishman can be a free man, nor the English nation a free people (London?, 1780) a copy of Tom Paine’s Dissertation on First Principles of Government (Paris, 1795), a speech delivered to the French National Assembly proposing universal manhood suffrage a copy of the rare 1950 edition of the Noel Counihan linocut series War and Peace.
Donations	a wallhanging donated by GE Money Australia, depicting all prime ministers from Edmund Barton to John Howard in the Marble Bar, Sydney, 1983, with later additions (1996?), by Dawn Fitzpatrick and others a portrait of Robert Menzies as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, by Hans Selke, 1965, donated by Mr Domenico Polestina a collection, donated by Robin McLachlan, of posters used at polling booths in the electorates of Calare and Macquarie in the 2004 and 2007 elections, with how-to-vote cards for Peter Andren and other candidates and related ephemera a collection of carpenter’s tools used in the construction of the building, donated by Bill Townsend a collection of recent political history texts from the library of Fred Brenchley, a former member of the Advisory Council, donated by his widow, Elizabeth Brenchley a collection of Australian political history texts, donated by James Jupp material used for hearings of the National Human Rights Consultation in 2009, donated by the Human Rights Branch of the Attorney-General’s Department.
Oral history recordings	Interviews were recorded with the following former parliamentarians: the Rt Hon Doug Anthony the Hon Dame Margaret Guilfoyle Dr Richie Gun the Hon Michael Mackellar the Hon Jeanette McHugh (ongoing) the Hon Margaret Reid the Rt Hon Ian Sinclair Interviews were recorded with the following former officials and other people previously associated with Old Parliament House: Brian Cox (Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet) John Dealy (ACT Police) Julie Dyson (Hansard) Denise Edlington (Hansard) Jill Fleming (typist and committee research officer) June Lomax (Hansard) Roger Martindale (Australian Federal Police) Pat Sales (Hansard)

Collection management

Procedures

The agency’s Collection Management Procedures were reviewed and significantly updated during the year. The procedures outline in detail the ways in which all collection objects are to be managed within the building, and are a subsidiary section of the Collection Management Policy. They include procedures and guidelines for acquiring objects for the collection, registering objects in the collection database, borrowing and lending objects, and accessing, storing, researching, moving and transporting objects.

Collection items on display, particularly volumes of Hansard, increased by over 2%. The planned 2010–11 commencement of a program to add images and details of collection items to the agency’s website (moadoph.gov.au) will further improve public access.

Collection storage

After the relocation of much of the collection to a new storage area in 2008–09, making use of space formerly occupied by the National Portrait Gallery, a priority during 2009–10 was to ensure the best use of that space. In addition to ensuring a generally high standard of storage space and practice, dedicated areas were established for accessioning (formally registering objects into the collection), photography of items, conservation and exhibition preparation. A public tour of this space was given during ACT Heritage Week.

University of Canberra course

In the first semester of 2010, agency representatives were privileged to deliver the Collection Management unit to third year students of cultural heritage at the University of Canberra, following an approach from the university. The course was coordinated by the Heritage and Information Communication Technology Section and delivered by contributors from across the organisation. Delivering the course has generated substantial goodwill and a good working alliance between the agency and the university.

• About the report
• Letter of transmittal
• Contents
• Chapter 1: Director’s Review
• Chapter 2: Agency overview
• Chapter 3: Report on performance
  • Outcome and program structure
  • Performance report for Program 1.1
  • Performance report for Program 1.2
    • Key performance indicator 1
    • Key performance indicator 2
    • Key performance indicator 3
• Chapter 4: Management and accountability
• Chapter 5: Financial statements
• Case studies
• Appendices
• References