Archives are unique records deemed worthy of permanent preservation. To help us ensure the safety of all our archives and their continuing availability for study, the following regulations have been devised. Please read the terms carefully prior to your visit.
Admission to the Reading Room is by prior appointment only during our opening hours:
- Coats, bags, scarves etc. are not permitted in the reading room. Lockers are provided for storage.
- Pencils only may be used for note taking. All ink biros, fountain pens, corrective fluid etc. are prohibited.
- No food or drink or smoking is allowed in the Reading Room. This includes water.
- Laptops, tablets & net-books are allowed. Mobile phones must be on “silent”. Any scanning devices are prohibited.
- Digital photography by researchers is permitted by request, free of charge and on completion of a Reproduction Application form for each item copied. Please note this may not always be possible due to availability, copyright restrictions, size and condition of materials. Copying must be done in the Rare Books and Manuscripts Reading Room. Items may not be removed to other parts of the Library for copying purposes. Should you require copies made on our book scanner, this is free of charge, and users must bring their own USBs. Staff will be on hand to show you how to use the book scanner if you are unsure.
- Groups of up to three people are permitted during a visit, with due regard shown to other researchers present.
- Items will be handed out individually or in a single file. Large number of items will not be given out at any one time, nor can items from separate collections be accessed together.
- Archival material must at all times be handled with great care and must not be marked, folded, annotated or torn in any way.
- You will be expected to abide by the handling instructions given to you by staff on the day, particularly in the case of fragile material.
The Archivist reserves the right at all times to withdraw material from use when such use will adversely affect the physical preservation of the item involved.
