Papyrus Cloud – Stock Status

⚙️

How Stock Status Works

The relationship between a catalogue record and its physical copies is central to understanding Stock Status:

Level	What it represents	Example
BRN (catalogue record)	The bibliographic description of a title — author, title, publisher, ISBN etc. One record per title regardless of how many copies the library holds.	"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" — one BRN
Stock item (ARN)	A physical copy of the title. Each copy has its own barcode, accession number, and Stock Status. One BRN may have many stock items.	6 copies, each with a barcode and their own status
Stock Status	A single-character code assigned to each stock item indicating its current condition or availability. Determines whether the item can be issued.	Copy 1 = Normal (0), Copy 4 = Binding (4), Copy 6 = Lost (5)

When a Front Desk operator scans an item barcode, Papyrus Cloud checks the item's Stock Status. If the status has Allow Issue ticked, the item can be loaned. If not, the system blocks the issue and shows the status description — for example, "This item is currently in Binding" or "This item is Lost".

📋

The Stock Status Screen

The screen displays all defined Stock Status codes in a grid showing the code, description, and Allow Issue flag for each. The Add form at the top creates new statuses; clicking Edit on any row opens it for editing inline.

Code…

Description…

Add

Print

Field	Description
Status	A single character code — a digit (0–9) or letter (A–Z). This code is stored against each individual stock item and must be unique across all status codes. Codes are case-sensitive. Maximum 1 character.
Description	The full name of the status as it appears in stock reports, the stock browse, and Front Desk messages. Maximum 25 characters.
Allow Issue	A checkbox that controls whether items with this status can be issued at the Front Desk. When ticked, the item can be loaned normally. When unticked, the system blocks the issue. See the Allow Issue section below for full details.

📦

Sample Library — All 14 Stock Statuses

The sample library uses 14 stock status codes covering normal circulation, special loan types, physical conditions, location categories, and disposal states. The Allow Issue column determines Front Desk behaviour for each.

Code	Description	Allow Issue	Notes
0	Normal	✓ Yes	Standard issuable stock. The default status for new items.
1	Reference	✗ No	In-library reference items. Cannot be taken home. Items remain accessible on shelves but the Front Desk will block home loans.
2	Media room	✓ Yes	Items housed in the media room rather than main shelves. Still issuable — perhaps for in-room or short-term loans.
3	Removed	✗ No	Weeded or deaccessioned items. No longer available for loan but kept in the system for historical records.
4	Binding	✗ No	Item sent to the bindery for repair or rebinding. Temporarily unavailable — status should be updated to Normal (0) when returned.
5	Lost	✗ No	Item reported or confirmed lost. Cannot be issued. Kept in the system for management and fine-tracking purposes.
6	Store rooms	✓ Yes	Items in storage rather than on display shelves. Still issuable — available on request from stores.
7	OVERNIGHT	✓ Special	Overnight loan items. Allow Issue is ticked so they can be issued, but the status name signals to Front Desk staff that the loan period should be overnight only.
8	3 DAY LOAN	✓ Special	Short-term loan items. Allow Issue is ticked, but the description signals to staff that a 3-day loan period applies — enforced through Privileges rather than the status itself.
9	Issue Skipped / Missing	✗ No	Typically used for serials where a specific issue was not received or cannot be located. Not issuable.
A	Not covered	✓ Yes	Item lacks a protective cover but is otherwise intact and issuable. Used to flag items needing covering without blocking loans.
T	Text Book	✓ Yes	Textbook items managed through the Textbooks module. Allow Issue is ticked as textbooks are issued — through the Textbooks workflow rather than standard Front Desk.
W	Water Damage – Slight	✓ Yes	Minor water damage that does not affect usability. Still issuable — a useful distinction from severe damage.
X	Water Damage – Bad	✗ No	Severe water damage rendering the item unsuitable for loan. Blocked until repaired, rebound, or disposed of.

Summary: 7 statuses allow issue (0, 2, 6, 7, 8, A, T, W) and 7 block issue (1, 3, 4, 5, 9, X) — plus the subtle distinction between slight vs bad water damage that allows the library to keep damaged-but-usable items in circulation.

🔒

Allow Issue — Issuable vs Blocked Statuses

The Allow Issue checkbox is the most operationally significant field on this screen. It acts as a gate at the Front Desk — not as a fine-grained lending rule (that is Privileges), but as a binary on/off switch for whether an item can be picked up and taken home at all.

✓ Allow Issue — ticked

Item can be issued at the Front Desk. Lending rules (loan period, quota, fines) are then applied from Privileges. Examples: Normal, Media room, Store rooms, Overnight, 3 Day Loan, Not covered, Water Damage–Slight, Text Book.

✗ Allow Issue — unticked

Front Desk blocks the issue when this item is scanned. The status description is shown to the operator. Examples: Reference, Removed, Binding, Lost, Issue Skipped/Missing, Water Damage–Bad.

⚠ Special — Allow Issue ticked, but named

Issuable but the descriptive name communicates a special condition to Front Desk staff. Examples: OVERNIGHT (issue allowed but staff should enforce overnight return), 3 DAY LOAN (issue allowed but 3-day period applies through Privileges).

ℹ

Stock Status only controls whether an item can be issued — it does not control the loan period, quota, or fine rate. Those are set in the Privileges matrix (Member Type × Publication Type). The status is a pre-circulation gate; Privileges are the post-gate lending rules.

💡

The OVERNIGHT and 3 DAY LOAN statuses in the sample library are a good example of using status names as staff instructions. Allow Issue is ticked so the items can be physically issued, but the status name itself reminds the Front Desk operator of the special conditions. The actual loan period is enforced through Privileges or manual override at the Front Desk, not through the status code.

➕

Adding a Status

Enter the single-character code and description at the top of the screen and click Add. The new status appears in the grid with Allow Issue unticked by default. Click Edit on the new row immediately to tick Allow Issue if the status should permit lending.

⚠

The Status code is a single character — one digit (0–9) or one letter (A–Z). Since the sample library already uses 0–9, A, T, W, and X, any new status must use a different letter. Choose codes that are meaningful and easy to remember, as they appear on stock browse screens and in reports.

ℹ

New stock items default to Status 0 (Normal) unless a different status is set when the stock item is added in EasyCAT or another cataloguing tool. The Normal status should always exist and always have Allow Issue ticked.

✏️

Editing and Deleting

Click Edit on any row to open it for inline editing. The description and Allow Issue flag can be changed. The code itself cannot be changed once stock items have been assigned to it. Click Update to save or Cancel to discard.

Click Delete to remove a status. Papyrus will prevent deletion if any stock items are currently assigned to that status — you must reassign those items first. Deletion of Status 0 (Normal) is not recommended as it is the system default for new items.

⚠

Changing Allow Issue on a status takes effect immediately for all stock items currently assigned that status. For example, if you untick Allow Issue on the Normal (0) status, all currently Normal stock items will become unissuable at the Front Desk — a very significant change. Always double-check which items hold a status before changing its Allow Issue flag.

🔍

Browse Stock Status

The companion screen Browse Stock Status (Routines → BRN Routines → Browse Stock Status) provides a view of all stock items filtered and grouped by their status code. This is useful for:

Use case	How to use Browse Stock Status
Finding all lost items	Filter by status 5 (Lost) to see every item currently marked as lost — for insurance, replacement ordering, or fine recovery.
Checking items at the bindery	Filter by status 4 (Binding) to see which copies are currently out for repair and confirm they have been returned.
Audit of removed items	Filter by status 3 (Removed) to review weeded items before final disposal from the database.
Water-damaged items report	Filter by W or X to assess the extent of damage to the collection and prioritise repairs or replacements.

📐

Planning Your Stock Statuses

Guideline	Detail
Keep 0 (Normal) as your default	Status 0 is assigned to new items by default. Always keep it defined with Allow Issue ticked. Renaming it is fine, but it should always represent the standard issuable state.
Use clear, unambiguous descriptions	Descriptions appear in Front Desk messages when an item is blocked — make them informative enough that staff understand why the item cannot be issued without needing to consult anyone. "Item is at the Bindery" is more useful than "Status 4".
Separate location from condition	The sample library uses status for both location (Media room, Store rooms) and condition (Lost, Binding, Water Damage). Both are valid, but keep the distinction clear in descriptions so reports are meaningful.
Don't over-create statuses	The single-character code allows only 36 possible values (0–9 plus A–Z). The sample library uses 14. Keep the list manageable — too many statuses make reports harder to interpret and stock management more complex.
Grade damage by severity	The W/X pattern (slight vs bad water damage) is a useful model for any condition that has degrees — minor vs severe, repairable vs unrepairable. This avoids blunt all-or-nothing blocking of items that are still usable.
Use special-purpose statuses for Textbooks	The T (Text Book) status is specifically for items managed through the Textbooks module. If your library uses that module, maintain a dedicated status so textbook stock is clearly distinguished in reports from general library stock.