Feedback from families in Kuantan and Pahang who have completed the schema session, the cataloguing project or the full Custodian Support Programme.
Back to HomeAfter my father passed, I found myself with four cardboard boxes of papers and no idea what any of them were. Some turned out to be duplicates from twenty years back, others were things the solicitor needed. The intake session gave us a way to tell them apart and code them consistently. Within a week I could find anything by its reference code.
We used the Full Cataloguing service for my late mother's estate. What took the family three weekends of going through the same papers twice — not finding what we needed — was resolved in six weeks. The printed index is straightforward enough that my siblings in Kuala Lumpur can use it without asking me. That alone was worth the fee.
I am the eldest and I have taken on keeping the family records. The Custodian Support Programme was what I needed. I now have a storage map that tells me exactly where each category of document is kept — including what is in the safe deposit box at the bank. The quarterly reviews keep it current. It does not feel like a task I am doing alone.
I was clear before I started that I wanted someone who would organise the papers, not advise me on what to do with them. Vestmere explained the scope in writing before the first appointment, which reassured me. The schema session was practical — two hours and I had a system that worked. I have since used it to continue coding papers as they come in.
My family had papers from my grandmother's estate that nobody had properly filed since the 1990s. Some of them were on paper that had become fragile. The archival rehousing was important to us. The fact that the digital copy is on an encrypted device we hold — not stored somewhere else — was also something we specifically asked about and appreciated.
The walkthrough with my younger brother in month twelve was something I had not expected to find useful, but it was. He came in knowing nothing about the system and left understanding where the records are kept, what the reference codes mean and what to do if I am unavailable. That was the outcome we had not thought to ask for but needed.
Two generations of papers held in an unlabelled accordion file, a plastic box and a drawer. The family could identify fewer than half the documents by name without opening them.
Schema session established eleven categories relevant to the family's papers. Reference codes assigned. Thirty-two sample items coded during the session. Starter folder set and schema sheet issued.
Family completed independent coding of the remaining papers over two weekends using the schema sheet. Written referral list produced for three items appearing to require a solicitor's attention.
Eight hundred and forty pages across three physical locations. Included land grant originals, multiple copies of the same insurance policy, and correspondence dating from 1987. No existing index.
Schema session, followed by five-week cataloguing project. All items coded and rehoused. Sixty-one duplicate items identified, retention schedule issued. Forty-three duplicates destroyed on written instruction with destruction certificate issued.
Bound master index with 797 entries. Searchable digital index delivered on encrypted media. Four items on written referral list for solicitor. Family able to respond to a land office document request the following month within the same afternoon.
Eldest sibling responsible for records covering four properties, two insurance portfolios and correspondence relating to a previous estate settlement. Records held across home, bank and a sibling's house in a different district.
Schema and full cataloguing completed in months one to two. Storage map produced covering all three locations. Quarterly reviews in months three, six, nine and twelve updated the index and storage map as new papers arrived. Annual walkthrough with second sibling completed in month twelve.
Index covers 1,104 items across three locations. Second sibling can locate any item independently. Custodian handbook describes the schema and the retention rules. Programme renewed for a second year.
A two-hour appointment at RM 510 produces a filing structure the whole family can use. Send an enquiry to confirm availability and receive the scope statement before booking.
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