Facilities
Please see individual reading room pages for facilities not listed here.
Bags and personal belongings
Bags may be taken into the Upper and Lower Reading Rooms of the Old Library, and into the Radcliffe Camera, but they must be presented for inspection on demand on both entering and leaving the building. Bags may be left in the bag storage area at the bottom of the North stairs in the Old Library. Readers using Duke Humfrey’s Library must leave their bags in this area and will be required to sign in and out of that room at the porter’s desk at its entrance.
The Library cannot accept responsibility for readers’ personal belongings, and money, laptops, and valuables should not be left unattended.
Other than bottled water, food and drink should not be consumed in the Library, nor should it be left overnight. (Bottled water cannot be taken into Duke Humfrey's Library). Readers are welcome to bring mobile telephones and personal audio equipment into the Library, but such equipment must not disturb other library users. Telephone calls may not be made or received in reading rooms.
Group work room
The Old Library Training Room may be booked for groups of two to ten people to work together. The room can be booked for one hour at a time, with no more than two hours per group, per day.The last bookable slots each day are 5-6pm on weekdays, 2-3pm on Saturdays.
The room contains ten reader PCs with internet access, a flipchart stand/whiteboard (flipchart paper is not supplied but pens may be borrowed from the Main Enquiry Desk), and a small side table.
To book, please ask Main Enquiry Desk staff by 3.30pm of the day before the room is needed (by email: reader.services@bodleian.ox.ac.uk). The reader booking the room is responsible for the group using it, and this person's card will be held by Main Enquiry Desk staff while the room is in use. Library rules apply in this room; the consumption of food and drink is not permitted and telephone calls should not be made or received.
Please note that the Training Room is used for both reader and staff training, and may be unavailable. The room will be unavailable for group bookings in the week before the first week (0th week) and the first week of every Michaelmas Term (see term dates).
Quiet group study is now also possible in the Gladstone Link, as this area is not a silent space. We ask that library users respect the others working in this space when carrying out group work.
Lost property
Enquiries should be made immediately in the reading room where the item was lost or at the entrance to the Old Library.
Toilets
Readers’ toilets are situated in the Old Library (off the Proscholium) in the Radcliffe Camera (at the foot of the staircase well), and in the Gladstone Link.
Accessible toilets are situated in the Old Library and in the Gladstone Link.
Comments regarding Library facilities and services
Suggestions or comments about Library facilities and services can be made by emailing reader.services@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.