If you are a current member of staff at the University of Bedfordshire, you are entitled to a full range of Library services on or off campus.

As a member of staff you are entitled to

• Borrow maximum 20 items at a time
• Have automatic renewals service unless another customer reserves the item, your items will be renewed up to 20 times on your behalf
• Reserve up to 6 items at a time
• Use our Document Supply Service on items that we do not have access to
• Use library study space during advertised opening hours
• Have library staff support at our Customer Service Desks and Study Hub
• Use PCs/MACs and multi-function printers
• Use our booking service for PCs and training rooms (where available)

Off Campus

• Have Remote Access to digital resources via DISCOVER and the Library Catalogue
• Online support and help by using our Library website
• Use of service emails for service queries and IT support (48 hours response time)
• Telephone support during staffed hours

Remember:

Your username and password gives you access to all your University Accounts and IT systems.

WiFi-Eduroam: you can connect your portable device to the WiFi network with your University network account.

Visiting Other Libraries

The University of Bedfordshire is a member of a number of co-operative schemes which you can use.

You can join SCONUL Access for access to over 170 higher education libraries in the UK and Ireland. It enables staff and researchers to borrow up to 4 material from other libraries. SCONUL also operates a vacation scheme which gives access to most university libraries during the vacations of the host institution. Your current university ID card will normally be acceptable but check as local arrangements may differ. This scheme gives you reference only access therefore you will not be able to borrow or access any electronic information.

If you cannot join through Sconul, you can check the M25 Consortium.

M25 Consortium of Academic Libraries (currently there are 60 member institutions) is a collaborative organisation that works to improve library and information services within the M25 region and more widely across the East and Southeast by providing access to services and resources for learners and researchers. Access to the majority of M25 consortium libraries is via SCONUL Access Scheme; however some libraries (listed below) are not part of this scheme and these libraries can be accessed using the M25 scheme.

• British Library
• British Museum
• Horniman Museum
• Imperial War Museum
• Institute of Development Studies
• Natural History Museum
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
• Royal Society of Chemistry
• Science Museum
• Victoria and Albert Museum
• The Wiener Library Institute of Contemporary History
• Wellcome Library

If you wish to join this scheme please receive an application form from your home library. This guide gives more information on your membership rights www.m25lib.ac.uk

British Library

The main British Library site is in London on Euston Road next to Kings Cross and St Pancras railways stations. Getting to The British Library

There are 11 specialist Reading Rooms at the St Pancras site. If you wish to use the resources available in the Reading Rooms you will need to apply for a Readers Pass

Some hints and tips before you make the journey to the British Library

• Check the university library catalogue to make sure we haven’t got what you need
• Make sure you read the guidance on applying for a Readers pass especially on the accepted forms of ID
• The British Library does not hold multiple copies of standard texts for university course work.
• Remember the British Library is a closed access (you can’t browse the shelves) research library. You request material and it is bought to your desk in the reading room this can take from 70 minutes to 48 hours.
• Check the British Library catalogue to make sure they’ve got what you want
• If you have a Readers Pass think about requesting your material in advance to save time
• Talk to your Academic Liaison Librarian to double check that it is worth your time and effort going to the British Library, there may be quicker and easier alternatives to get what you want.