Collection Policy - Library - The University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne Collection Policy 2006

APPENDIX 2: Donations, Gifts and Bequests Policy Guidelines

Guidelines for Donors

Financial donations

The University of Melbourne welcomes gifts and bequests of money that support our libraries. Funds received will be used in developing our collections, including the purchase of invaluable but prohibitively expensive items. Donors can specify how the donation is to be spent (e.g. for Music, Botany, Rare Editions).

All donations to the University of Melbourne of $2 and over are tax deductible.

Donors are invited to contact:

The Advancement Office
Level 3, 45 Barry Street
The University of Melbourne
Victoria 3010 Australia
Tel: +61 3 8344 1751
http://www.unimelb.edu.au/alumni/giving/

Donors may also wish to consult the Australian Taxation Office website www.ato.gov.au/

Gifts

Information Services welcomes gifts of published material that will support the learning, teaching and research endeavours of the University and build on our historic collections. However, as there are always additional costs for the preservation, repair and cataloguing of gifts, a financial contribution towards these costs is requested.

Offers of gifts with significant resource implications must be approved by the Library Resources and Services Advisory Group.

To build the depth of the collection we are more interested in marginal than mainstream material. Pamphlets and other ephemera can be extremely hard to acquire except by donation, and yet often they contain information not otherwise recorded.

We are particularly interested in:

Music
Ephemera, such as catalogues of exhibitions, concert programmes
Medical and scientific history
Pre-1920 Australiana
Architecture
Jewish history
Russian history
Arabic and Middle Eastern materials
Chinese and Japanese language materials
Journals that complete existing holdings in the collection

There are, however, some materials that we can’t use:

Duplicates of titles already in our collections (please check our catalogue http://cat.lib.unimelb.edu.au/ )
Superseded editions of textbooks or reference works
Materials that have been stored for a long time and have a musty smell, or show signs of mould, or are in poor condition
Science and technology materials published more than four years ago
Copies of much that is found in a typical private scholar's library
Condensed versions (eg., Reader’s Digest condensed books)

Gifts may not be accepted if the donor wishes to place any limitations or restrictions on their use or disposal. Any restrictions placed on the library in accepting donations must first be agreed to in writing by the Director, Information Management. In cases where it is necessary to decline a donation, the reason will be explained to the prospective donor.

It is Information Services policy that gift material becomes the property of the University of Melbourne. Gifts will be integrated into the existing collections, can not be claimed back at a later date, and are subject to the same conditions of use as existing collections, including retention, location, use and disposal.

Information Services reserves the right to decline or dispose of gift material. As shelf space is limited, all individual titles are carefully reviewed for their usefulness. Funds for cataloguing are used firstly for high-use materials, so donations may be left uncatalogued for lengthy periods. Donors are encouraged to provide resources for shelving, cataloguing, preservation and processing of gifts.

To discuss your gift please contact Tracey Caulfield, Deputy Curator, Special Collections. Note we can only accept material by prior arrangement. Tel: (03) 8344-6636 during business hours. Email: traceyac@unimelb.edu.au

Cultural Gifts Program

Under Subdivision 30-A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997, a tax deduction for the market value of a gift may be available to donors offering important collections or individual titles to the University of Melbourne. Each gift needs to be valued by two valuers chosen from a list of those appointed for the purpose by the Commonwealth Government. In addition, a Transfer of Ownership must be completed, transferring ownership from the donor to the University. Information Services obtains valuations of donations made, thus securing taxation benefits for donors.

Cultural Bequests Program

This is a program aimed at private collectors who may wish to bequeath nationally significant cultural items or collections to the University. Such bequests are encouraged, not only by being made exempt from capital gains tax and by making the agreed value of the gift tax deductible against the income of the donor's estate, but by also allowing the donors to retain custody of the item(s) during their lifetime.

To discuss the Cultural Gifts and Cultural Bequests programs please contact Belinda Nemec, Cultural Collections Officer Tel: (03) 8344 0269 during business hours. Email: bnemec@unimelb.edu.au

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