John le Carré and Shirley Hughes' archives classified as cultural heritage

Arts Council England has revealed that John le Carré’s literary archive of 918 boxes, featuring manuscripts, draft texts, notes and diaries, has been classified as cultural heritage. 

As part of the Acceptance in Lieu Scheme (AIL), objects of cultural significance are moved from private collections into the public domain to improve public collections. This allows owners of significant cultural objects to give those items to the nation, while also settling an Inheritance Tax bill.

The author, who was also known as David Cornwell, has an archive worth an estimated £1.5m. This has been allocated to the Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford until it is decided where it will be transferred permanently.

The collection features documents collected throughout the novelist’s career. A panel chaired by Michael Clarke CBE considered the archive to have an especially close association with the nation’s history and national life. The collection was also seen to be "of special importance for the study of some particular form of art, learning or history". 

The archive of children’s author and illustrator Shirley Hughes, which features thousands of illustrations and drafts, was also secured through the scheme. This collection is worth £2.4m and has also been allocated to the Bodleian.