Accreditation

Professional Accreditation of Conservator-Restorers (PACR)

Conservators in the UK have completed their preparation of the
accreditation scheme which has been the subject of considerable
discussion here.  The scheme is owned and overseen by the National
Council of Conservation-Restoration.  The scheme is being
implemented from January 2000 by three of the constituent bodies of
NCC-R: United Kingdom Institute of Conservation, Institute of Paper
Conservation, and the Society of Archivists.

The full documents detailing the scheme and its implementation are
available at <URL:http://www.ukic.org.uk/pacr/>, which replaces the
previous page used during the development stages.

The PACR scheme has been developed by the conservation groups in the
UK with the assistance of Stan Lester who describes how and why we
got there in a paper at <URL:http://www.devmts.demon.co.uk/pacr.htm>

During 1999, the three implementing bodies have established a core
of competent, accredited, conservators using a rigorous assessment
of experienced conservators.  The accreditation status achieved by
and awarded to these conservators is being integrated into the PACR
scheme.

The UK will therefore establish in the new year a high standard of
conservation practice, exemplified by conservators who can be
trusted by the public and regulators.  This is a major step in
raising the standards of care for the heritage in the UK.

Velson Horie
Keeper of Conservation
The Manchester Museum
The University
Manchester
M13 9PL
UK
+44 161 275 2656
Fax: +44 161 275 2674

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 13:31
                Distributed: Tuesday, November 23, 1999
                       Message Id: cdl-13-31-002
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