Dear Victoria University of Wellington,

Recently, I lost an item at the main library at Kelburn campus and approached the helpdesk to inquire about it. The helpdesk informed me that lost property is sent to VUWSA. However, upon visiting VUWSA, I was told that they had not received any lost property from the library for a while.

I discussed the lost property process with VUWSA and learned that they are funded to manage lost property for the University. However, items from the library are rarely sent to VUWSA and are instead directed to University security, which may then pass some items on to VUWSA.

I inquired about the fate of unclaimed lost property. VUWSA explained that some personal items are securely disposed of or handed over to the police, clothing items are added to clothing and charity drives, and valuable items may be sold. The proceeds from these sales are held and donated annually to a Wellington-based charity.

VUWSA also mentioned that it is their understanding that University security retains valuable items, but they were unsure of what happens to those items.

I am wondering about the following:
- What is the process or policy for handling lost property at the University?
- Does University security retain items instead of passing them to VUWSA? If so, what are the criteria and process for this?
- What happens to unclaimed lost property held by the University? If items are sold, what is the procedure, and where do the proceeds go?
- Why does the University fund VUWSA to manage lost property while also managing items itself?

Yours faithfully,
Margaret