NEWS RELEASE
10 DECEMBER, 20013
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIAN MOVES TO CHAWTON HOUSE LIBRARY
Dr Darren Bevin has been appointed new Librarian of Chawton House Library, the
Hampshire study centre for English women’s writing from 1600 to 1830 and home to
rare books and manuscripts by authors including Jane Austen and Mary Shelley.
Dr Bevin will be responsible for providing library services and support to academics
and university students, as well as helping to develop further a unique collection of
works for the study centre.
Dr Bevin was previously Senior Library Assistant at the Faculty of Divinity Library at
the University of Cambridge. His 17-year career also includes librarian posts at the
University Centre César Ritz in Switzerland and Manchester Metropolitan University.
He replaces Jacqui Grainger, who has moved to Sydney as the university’s Manager
of Rare Books and Special Collections.
Dr Bevin said: “Having worked at the Special Collections unit at the University of
Exeter whilst studying a PhD in English literature, I wanted to become more involved
with rare books and archives.
“At Chawton House Library I have the opportunity to draw on my knowledge of the
subject area and use my experience of working with library users and researchers in
a unique setting,” he added.
Steve Lawrence, Chawton House Library’s Chief Executive, said: “Dr Bevin will be
crucial in making sure we remain a world-leading specialist library.
“He understands the context of early women’s writing, based on his own academic
studies, as well as the dynamics of providing a library service and support to
scholars, whether the are leaders in their field or students,” Lawrence added.
“One key challenge is to expand our collection and acquire unique and interesting
material with a relatively small budget so that our scholars get the very best out of
what we have,” he said.
Chawton House itself is more than 400 years old and is regularly open to visitors,
alongside library readers, for tours and during public events. It also runs educational
and outreach projects with schools and colleges and fosters links internationally.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
For more information or photographs contact:
Marta Clayton
Smarta PR
Mobile: 07714 622337
Email: marta@smartapr.co.uk
About Chawton House Library (www.chawtonhouse.org)
Chawton House Library is one of the world’s leading centres for the study of the lives
and works of women writing in English between 1600 and 1830 and home to a
unique collection of rare books and manuscripts.
Writers whose work is held in the collection include Jane Austen, Aphra Behn,
Frances Burney, Mary Robinson, Mary Shelley, Frances Sheridan and Mary
Wollstonecraft.
Chawton House Library opened as a UK-registered charity in 2003 after seven years
of extensive restoration work on the historic house and gardens, which are open to
visitors and sit within the South Downs National Park.
The house itself is more than 400 years old and its history is interwoven with the
family story of Jane Austen, whose brother inherited the house in 1826 after being
adopted in 1784 by the Knight family who owned the estate.
Chawton House Library enjoys close links with the University of Southampton and
provides research facilities for their students studying for an MA in EighteenthCentury Studies.
The charity also runs education and outreach services, offering educational visits to
schools, colleges and universities. This includes working in partnership with the Jane
Austen House Museum, also in Chawton, to provide Austen-themed visits to support
school curriculums.
In 2007, both sites were awarded the Sandford Award for Heritage Education in
recognition of their work.