Haddon Library Acquisition Policy

Recommendations and selection of monographic material

The Haddon Library will acquire material that is included in course reading lists and recommended by teaching staff for students in the Departments of Archaeology and Social Anthropology, thereby supporting undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes. 

Preference will be given to material that meets much or all of the following criteria:

  • Published recently (i.e. within the last five years)
  • Recommended to students for more than one chapter
  • Not present in the Haddon Library
  • Not present in another Faculty or Departmental Library, or the main UL
  • Not available for online consultation from a reputable source
  • Complementing a particular collection strength of the Haddon Library 
  • Enabling the Haddon Library to diversify its collection 

The Haddon Library is part of a joined-up resource recommendation scheme coordinated by Collections Management colleagues based in the University Library (UL) and so will receive requests via a centralised Recommendation Request Form.

The Librarian will liaise with University Library colleagues, as well as any relevant Faculty/Department and College Librarians, to resolve requests in the most appropriate way possible. This may involve purchasing the recommended resource from Library funds or passing the request on to a more suitable collection within Cambridge. 

The Haddon Library team can also receive recommendations in-person or via email and each request is reviewed on a case-by-case basis according to the above-mentioned criteria and at the discretion of the Librarian.

Material in other languages

Publications in non-European languages will not typically be added to the Haddon Library’s collection due to the specialist knowledge required to fully catalogue these resources.

However, for material that is critical for teaching and research, support will be sought from language specialist colleagues in other libraries. Additional exceptions to this rule can include material about and/or by underrepresented voices in our collections such as indigenous groups.

If a work exists in an English translation, or a parallel text format, the Haddon Library will endeavour to acquire that version, unless there are concerns or doubts about its veracity. Translations from English into other languages will not typically be acquired.

Variant versions

The Haddon Library will not typically acquire variant versions of works it already holds. However, we will acquire new editions where one or more of the following circumstances apply:

  • the new edition incorporates substantial revision
  • the subject has undergone rapid change 
  • the Haddon Library's copy of the previous edition has been heavily used or damaged
  • more than five years have elapsed since the previous edition

The Haddon will acquire modern facsimiles or reprints of some texts if this is necessary to conserve and reduce damage to the originals, such as with some of our rare books

Multiple copies and replacement copies

Multiple copies of books will be acquired where demand from readers is exceptionally high and an appropriate electronic alternative is not available. Where copies are lost or damaged through high use, and they are still being recommended for teaching, replacement copy/ies will be purchased where possible.

Due to the nature of library books being used more heavily than those held in a private collection, second-hand copies of out-of-print books will not ordinarily be purchased unless they are in a “like new” condition.

Electronic books (ebooks)

The Haddon Library purchases ebooks via the ebooks@cambridge scheme, coordinated by the UL. Titles for purchase will be sent to the ebooks@cambridge team in the following circumstances:

  • a specific recommendation for their purchase as ebooks
  • availability of an ebook will help alleviate pressure on physical copies
  • availability of an ebook will support diverse learning and research needs
  • a physical book is not borrowable for whatever reason 
  • an electronic book is the preferred format within the context of the request

Due to the high cost of certain electronic publishing models, a decision may be taken to not purchase an ebook where it is not justifiable use of limited funds. Examples of this can include excessively high charges per single use of an ebook, prohibitive restrictions on usability of a resource, or a credit-based system that is unsustainable.

While some ebooks may be available through services such as Amazon’s Kindle service and other commercial ventures, many of these types of services are designed for individual purchase and are not an appropriate purchasing model that libraries can benefit from.

In cases where a stable online address exists for an Open Access publication named on a reading list, the publication will be added to the University's online catalogue with link to that address. Note that personal uploads to services such as ResearchGate, Academia.edu or personal websites do not qualify as Open Access in this context.

Reference works

This category includes encyclopedias, dictionaries, bibliographies, maps, atlases, and Library and museum catalogues.

For the Haddon to acquire such publications, they must meet the following criteria:

  • must focus on archaeology and/or anthropology, or subfields within the discipline(s)
  • be indispensable for the work of staff and students
  • must contain information that is not readily and reliably available online

Periodicals and journals

Periodical and journal runs are kept as complete as possible. Decisions about new subscriptions are now taken as part of the University's Journal Coordination Scheme, of which the Librarian is a member.

Where a title is published both online and in a print version, financial and storage pressures recommend against the collection of multiple print copies of titles that are available across the University. This includes access online through purchased packages or via an Open Access route.

Typically, a printed subscription will be discontinued, unless one or more of the following conditions are met:

  • A printed subscription is necessary to enable the online subscription
  • The long-term sustainability of an electronic subscription is of concern
  • Maintaining a printed subscription is critical for teaching and/or research activities within the Departments of Archaeology and Social Anthropology

It should be noted that while the Haddon Library does continue to purchase and acquire physical copies of many periodicals and journals, they may not always be stored within the Library itself and can be transferred to the Library Storage Facility (LSF) for secure, long-term storage. These titles are still accessible to consult, upon request, in physical form and via digital scans.

Audio-visual material

The Haddon Library will not normally acquire audio-visual publications or materials unless available digitally and/or online due to the longer-term challenges around storing such material.

Dissertations and theses

Dissertations approved for the award of B.A. and M.Phil. degrees have been deposited in the Haddon over the years and kept in secure conditions. Theses approved for other degrees were not acquired as a matter of policy, but donations were sometimes accepted.

Since 2020, many B.A. dissertations are now deposited with the Library electronically and stored in a secure cloud-based drive. Lists of available dissertations are displayed on the Haddon Library website for members of the University to request.

Since 2017, all PhD theses have been deposited in the University's institutional repository Apollo. Many are available for consultation while others may be embargoed or under controlled access for a variety of reasons. Printed copies of PhD theses can be purchased via the UL.

Library users requesting access to unpublished dissertations from other institutions will be referred to the UL’s Inter-Library Loan service or the British Library's EThOs service.

Offprints

Offprints are not generally purchased, and donations and bequests of them are discouraged.

Copies of chapters and articles in exceptionally high demand, and are not available electronically, will be posted by Haddon Library staff on the relevant course Moodle site and associated online reading list in accordance with the terms of the University's Copyright Licensing Agency agreement.

Teaching staff wishing to make such copies available should contact the Haddon Library directly to facilitate this process.

Archive material

The Haddon Library retains some administrative archives relating to its own work while some archives relating to the work of some other bodies within, or associated with, the Faculty may be also stored here.

However, the Haddon Library does not have the resources for proper archive conservation and will not seek to add such material to its stock. If an archive does require support and storage, the University Archivist should be consulted in the first instance.

Books more than 100 years old

The Haddon Library is proud of its collection of old and rare books, some of which date back to the 16th century. Most of these have come to the Library by donation. They are kept in secure, stable conditions, and questions about their treatment are referred to appropriate experts in other Cambridge libraries.

The University Library, and the libraries of the older colleges in Cambridge, all of which possess substantial holdings of rare books, are good sources of such expertise.

Exchange materials

The Haddon Library has benefited from two modes of exchange over the years: one where this Library purchases material to send on to the exchange partner, and one where the material for sending is donated from within the Library's immediate community such as by the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, the Museum, the McDonald Institute, or one of the journals that are published in the Faculty.

Many historic exchanges have ceased in recent years so this area of collections management predominantly concerns historic stock.

Last reviewed May 2025