In response to Nigel Hardman's request. Please use the free web search
service
www.conservationregister.com
The Conservation Register, formerly run by the Museums & Galleries
Commission, is owned by the UK Institute for Conservation and managed in
partnership with Historic Scotland, and its oversight is directed in
collaboration with other conservation professional bodies such as the
Institute of Paper Conservation and the British Association of Painting
Conservator-Restorers.
With funding from English Heritage, MLA and others, we have spent four
years improving and enhancing the database of practices (which must now
include accredited practitioners as well as meeting the business criteria,
in order to be eligible for registration) and developing a new web-based
service. The web site contains much information about using conservation
services and caring for heritage.
The web search system and all the site information is free to all users.
There is also a telephone service for detailed guidance. The search system
allows you to identify the services you need and the system then provides
you with a list of accredited practices. The search is intitially based on
post-code area and thereafter the list generated depends also on frequency
of hits - i.e. the first name on the list is placed at the bottom of the
list when the next searcher enters the same needs. This is to ensure a
measure of evenhandedness when presenting searchers with practice
information.
The mixture of accreditation and unbiased information is the reason why the
use of the Register is encouraged by English Heritage, the National Trust,
Council for the Care of Churches, MLA and other national
public organisations. Since the launch of the web-based service and the
new cirteria, use of the Register has risen from 100 searches per month to
1400 searches per month.
Ownership and management of the Register will transfer to the new merged
Institute of Conservation early next year.
I hope you find what you are looking for Nigel!
Chris Woods
Chairman, UKIC
Head of Collection Care & Conservation
Oxford University Library Services
Bodleian Library
Broad Street
Oxford OX1 3BG
Tel: (01865) 277075
Fax: (01865) 277182
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