During the two year period of relocation to the 3rd floor of the South Block, one-third of the IHR Library will remain on open access. Much of the remainder of the collection will be housed in the Senate House Tower, and the rest will be in offsite storage in Egham, both available through a fetch service. The Location of library collections following the move are now available on the IHR website.

Ordering and consultation arrangements for materials in the closed stacks

The IHR library staff will administer a dedicated fetch service for the items stored in the tower. Items stored offsite at the depository can be delivered within 1-2 working days. Library staff will aim to ensure the service is as responsive to demand as possible, and requests for material can be made in person, via telephone or email. Please note that due to staffing restrictions it will not always be possible for material to be fetched outside the core hours of 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. The Library would strongly encourage those wishing to request closed access material to contact the Library in advance of their visit wherever possible, so we can ensure material is waiting on arrival. In addition, material can be kept out for readers who wish to consult closed access items over a longer period. As is the case currently, library staff will work in an accessible enquiry office throughout library opening hours, ensuring continuity of service to readers.

Reader facilities

The current IHR photocopiers and microform reader/printer will be available in the temporary location, in addition to reader desks, catalogues terminals and PCs.

Opening hours

The IHR Library will maintain its current opening hours in the temporary location.  However, please be aware that there will be periods where some or all of the collections will be inaccessible while the move is taking place. The move is expected to start from 15th July and we are likely to be completely closed from 29 July to 2 August, reopening in the new location on 3rd August.

If  you have any queries or feedback, please contact either the Librarian Jennifer Higham jennifer.higham@london.ac.uk /020 7862 8769, or the Library Staff office ihr.library@sas.ac.uk /020 7862 8760.