DRAFT TABLE:
Level | Intellectual arrangement | Physical arrangement | Archival description | Housing and storage | Restrictions and privacy issues |
Baseline | Top-level archival unit with no defined internal arrangement. | Do not physically rearrange material received. Only rebox/refolder material if mould or other dangerous conditions are present. | Create a top-level archival description. | Only rebox/refolder if mould or other dangerous conditions are present. Rebox collection into acid free boxes if needed. Refolder only if mould or other dangerous conditions are present | Known or suspected restricted material may be spread throughout a fonds / collection. Privacy impact assessment is not conducted. No effort taken to physically segregate restricted materials. Rely on privacy and confidentiality note provided in top-level archival description and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
Low | Top-level archival unit with box list. | Only physically rearrange material received if necessary to facilitate physical storage. Do not rearrange folders within boxes. | Create a top-level description and box list with approximate date(s) of creation. Incorporate creator-supplied inventories whenever possible. | Remove bulky or damaging hardware (e.g., frames, binders). Folder loose items. Keep existing folders. | Known or suspected restricted material may be spread throughout a fonds / collection. Privacy impact assessment is not conducted but processing staff attempt to identify material that should be assessed and update box lists or box-folder lists with "pending review" restrictions notes. No effort taken to physically segregate restricted materials. Rely on privacy and confidentiality notes and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
Medium | Intellectual arrangement at the series level with box lists for each series. | Minimal effort to refine the physical order of series and/or files within a series. | Archival description at the series level with box lists for each series. Incorporate and revise creator-supplied inventories whenever possible. | Selectively refolder material into acid-free folders. Sleeve photographs and negatives. Isolate acidic materials. | Privacy impact assessment is not conducted but complete series or subseries is identified as restricted. Restricted material is physically segregated from open material. Restrictions and open dates are explained in archival descriptions. Rely on privacy and confidentiality note provided in archival descriptions and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
High | Intellectual arrangement into series and sub-series. | Physically arrange folders within series based on observed or desired order (e.g., alphabetic by title or subject, chronological) | Archival description at the sub-series level with container lists for each series and/or sub-series. Incorporate and revise creator-supplied inventories whenever possible. | Comprehensively refolder into acid-free folders. Rehouse all media. Optional: Remove paperclips and staples. Optional: Perform preservation photocopying depending on importance of materials. | Privacy impact assessment identifies restricted files. No effort taken to physically segregate restricted materials. Restrictions and open dates are explained in archival descriptions. Rely on privacy and confidentiality notes provided in archival descriptions and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
Highest | Intellectual arrangement into files contained within series and/or subseries. | Physically arrange items within folders that correspond to file-level archival descrptions. | Archival description at the file-level. Incorporate and revise creator-supplied inventories whenever possible. | Perform repairs. Create custom enclosures. Perform preservation photocopying on all newsprint. | Privacy impact assessment identifies restricted files. Restricted files are physically segregated from open material in the fonds / collection. Restrictions and open dates are explained in archival descriptions. Rely on privacy and confidentiality notes provided in archival descriptions and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
Item-level | Each item is examined and placed into a series/sub-series/file structure. | Arrange one item per folder. | Archival description at the item-level. Incorporate and revise creator-supplied inventories whenever possible. | Apply steps to each item of a fonds / collection, series, sub-series, etc. | Privacy impact assessment identifies individual restricted items. Items are removed from their original location, each documented with a separation sheet, and physically relocated elsewhere in the fonds / collection separately from open materials. Restrictions and open dates are explained in archival descriptions. Rely on privacy and confidentiality notes provided in archival descriptions and routine procedures in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. |
Note: this matrix is adapted from an archival processing plan and matrix developed as part of the TLAM project.