The Pepys Restoration Project
This year is focussed on raising funds to completely renovate and repurpose the unique Grade I listed Pepys Building. We are working to carefully restore the structure of the building. When complete there will be a new roof, new wiring, new heating, and a new lift to make the world-renowned Pepys Library accessible to all.
There will be a beautiful new entrance hall to welcome visitors and the many school children who come to enjoy the treasures held within the Pepys Library.
The newly restored building will house the Academic Office (Tutorial and Admissions teams), offer new seminar rooms, supervision and teaching rooms as well as new dedicated spaces for researchers who come from all over the world to study the remarkable volumes held in the Pepys Library.
The College will be funding this significant work from its reserves, but we are looking to you, our Members and Friends, to cover half of the £5 million cost to restore this important heritage building back to its former glory with remarkable craftsmanship and architectural ingenuity. By safeguarding structures like the Pepys Building, we celebrate our collective heritage, foster a sense of pride and reinforce the importance of cultural preservation in a globalising world.
We aim to restore the Pepys as sympathetically and sustainably as possible, just as we did when building the award-winning New Library. You will find outline details of the project in the pages below and we will update the progress of the work over the next 18 months.
Supporting the Pepys Restoration Project will enable you to have your name or that of a loved one recorded for posterity in the Book of Benefactors which will be on display in the building on completion of the work.
Project Timeline
Spanning from 2023 until the end of 2026 the Pepys Restoration Project is a major conservation project. This page details the scope of the works.
Preserve a Press
In his 1666 diary, Samuel Pepys recorded that he had lost the use of his books, he had roughly 250 piled in his study and was increasingly frustrated about accessing or damaging them. His solution, he called for ‘Simpson the Joiner’ to help him design ‘a cupboard for books’ which he called Presses.
Support the Pepys Restoration Project (£)
We are looking to you, our Members and Friends, to help restore this important heritage building and the Pepys Library for posterity. Please click here to make a gift in pounds (£).
Support the Pepys Restoration Project ($)
We are looking to you, our Members and Friends, to help restore this important heritage building and the Pepys Library for posterity. Please click here to make a gift in pounds ($).