The best advice is always to:

• Avoid or minimise risks from fire, flood, theft or pests or from unsuitably hot or damp conditions. In particular, avoid storage in attics or cellars where threats to the survival of papers may go unchecked and cannot easily be monitored.
• Stabilise and protect papers in your care by keeping them in suitable files and boxes (aside from bound volumes) while preserving their original order or arrangement
• Avoid attempts to repair damaged documents. The use of self-adhesive tape, such as sellotape is highly damaging as it causes chemical reactions to records on paper or parchment.
• If in doubt, contact your local record office for advice. Contact details of such offices can be found on our website in the ARCHON Directory.

Simple preservation measures you can take include:

• Using brass clips (clips made of other metal tend to rust) to hold single documents or small numbers of related papers together
• Carefully removing metal paper clips, staples and pins, and rubber bands where this can be done without damage. Unbleached archival tape made of cotton or linen can be used to preserve original bundles of papers.
• Keeping all papers flat and unfolded, preferably in archival-quality folders and boxes of appropriate size
• Ensuring that direct sunlight or powerful artificial lighting does not fall on manuscripts, typescripts, or other records which should be suitably protected by blinds or boxing as appropriate.

Try to keep records in a stable environment which is not too hot or humid: this will promote their long-term preservation. Temperatures rising significantly above 19°C on a regular basis or relative humidity significantly exceeding 60% can be particularly damaging to paper or parchment documents and should be avoided. In a domestic situation, records are best kept in a cool damp-free room where the air can circulate.

This is no more than elementary advice. Those caring for more substantial archives should consult our guide on protecting records against disasters(125kb)