Using the library
Finding items
Finding items
You can find books and all other kinds of Library material by using Discover. You can search by author, book or journal title, or keyword (subject). When the book you want comes up in your search results screen, click Available at. This should take you to the item location screen. Note the level and whether the item is on open or compact shelves. For help finding items we have a Discover guide and a video guide on using the Smart tables.
Using the compact shelving
Our books are arranged by subject, but we separate two week loan items from long loan and reference books.
- Two week loan books (books on reading lists) are on open shelves and have coloured spots on their spines
- Reference reading list books These are also on open shelves but are for use in the library only. They have a red dot at the top of their spine
- Long loan books are in the electronic compact shelving
- You can request Closed-access items from the Discover search record. You can collect them from the Library Desk the next day (excluding bank holidays)
Which numbers are on which floors?
The number sequence starts on level 4 and works down. See the table below for details:
| Collection | Level | Study type |
|---|---|---|
|
001-339 books and journals |
silent study |
|
|
340-599 books and journals |
silent study |
|
|
600-649 books and journals |
groupwork |
|
|
650-999 books and journals |
groupwork |
|
|
research collections and archives* |
groupwork |
|
|
audio-visual material |
groupwork |
* Closed access. Please ask at The Library Desk for assistance. Find out more at the Archives web site.
Two week loan and reference reading list books are all on open shelves.
This short video will help you to find books using the Smart tables.