Home to Joe Orton and Sue Townsend collections receives national accreditation

An archive service which holds the collections of Leicester literary greats, Joe Orton and Sue Townsend, has received approval from The National Archives.

The University of Leicester’s Archives and Special Collections, also home to the University’s institutions records, has retained Archives Service Accreditation.

Awarded by the Archive Service Accreditation Panel, accreditation recognises achievement, improvements and good performance in all areas of archives management. It demonstrates that the University’s archive service has met clearly defined national standards relating to management and resourcing; the care of its unique collections and what the service offers to its entire range of users.

Housed in the David Wilson Library, the archive is a treasure trove of material dating from the 11th century onwards.

Open to anybody who wishes to use it, the archive holds the personal and literary papers of playwright and author Joe Orton and the creator of Adrian Mole, Sue Townsend. It is also home to the East Midlands Oral History Archive, which contains more than 4,000 recordings capturing the social history of Leicester and Leicestershire’s diverse communities.

The archives contain a few surprises. Among letters exchanged with members of the Beat Generation by Leicester poet and academic Chris Challis is a lock of Allen Ginsberg’s hair.

Over the last few years, archive staff have also been working the University’s School of Museum Studies to collect the business archives of companies at the forefront of museum exhibition and gallery design.

Dr Simon Dixon, Associate Director for Community and Heritage in the Library and Learning Services, said: “We are delighted to have retained national accreditation for our Archives and Special Collections.

“The team has made great progress in the six years since we were first accredited, and I’m very pleased that this work has been recognised by the panel. We are continuing to develop our collections and how they are used. Whether it’s preserving the University’s digital and physical archives, opening up access to sound archives, or finding new ways to support research and teaching, there are many exciting opportunities ahead.”

The collections are used regularly for research, teaching and community engagement activities in collaboration with the University’s Heritage Hub. Members of the team will be at the Heritage Hub’s Celebration of Heritage event, which takes place in the Percy Gee Building, on Saturday 22 March, between 11am and 4pm.

The archive’s exhibitions, held in the David Wilson Library, are also open to all: currently on display is South Asian Legacies, a collaboration with the Students’ Union. Coming soon is a student-curated exhibition on Dryad Handicrafts, a collaboration between the Library, Museum Studies and Leicester Museum and Art Gallery.

The Archives & Special Collections team at the University comprises: Dr Simon Dixon, Associate Director for Community and Heritage in the Library and Learning Services; Eleanor Bloomfield, Library Adviser; Vicky Holmes, Archivist; Colin Hyde, Researcher/Outreach Officer East Midlands Oral History Archive; Ruth Maguire, Assistant Digital Archivist; Ian Swirles, Library Assistant; Sarah Wood, Assistant Archivist. and The team are pictured with Steve Williams, Director of Library & Learning Services. Archives & Special Collections is currently hosting Share our Sounds writer in residence, Helen Foster, funded by the British Library.