Consequence of Loss is part of the Collection Risk Assessment Framework.
Consequence of Loss is a summary of Heritage and Access Values.
The curatorial assessment of the material can be summed up in risk assessment thinking as the consequence of the loss of that material to your collection. Ask the question – does it matter that this particular item will be lost to vinegar syndrome or breakdown of the tape formulation?
The item’s Urgency might show that it is at risk from a technical point of view, but does it matter whether it survives? So we add the concept of Consequence of Loss to our technical assessment; this concept aims to put a significance value on items in the collection. This assessment is undertaken by curatorial staff or those with collection knowledge or significance assessment training and encompasses the concepts of heritage and access values.
Heritage Value
Incorporates the cultural significance of the title based on factors such as: aesthetic; historic; social; evidential and scientific values.
Access Value
Is based on factors such as: High access potential: Enduring demand; Low access potential: Unlikely to be in demand.