Withdrawing out-dated or unused material is an essential aspect of maintaining a lively and relevant collection for our academic staff and students and to make the most effective use of library space by ensuring an appropriate balance between library materials and study spaces.
Decisions are made principally on usage of material, with items normally being withdrawn if not borrowed in the last 5 years. Exceptions will be as follows:
Library staff consult academic staff in humanities and art and design subject areas but do not normally consult in areas which are largely textbook based. Justification will be requested from academic staff in respect of requests for retaining material, to ensure there is sufficient space for acquiring new titles and to maintain the right balance between study spaces and library materials.
In addition older or out-dated stock that has been borrowed more recently is reviewed in consultation with academic staff, with the aim of replacing older material with newer, more relevant books where possible.
In all areas except art and design (where illustration/colour is important and the electronic equivalents lack the same quality), back runs of journals are normally withdrawn where electronic archival access is guaranteed.
Journals that have ceased publication or are no longer taken by the Library ('dead runs') and have minimal usage are not retained, on the basis that inter library loans provide a fast and inexpensive source to fulfil occasional need.
Except in Art and Design and some areas within Humanities, Languages and Social Science, holdings of printed journal back runs are not normally maintained for more than 15 years. General recommendations for periods longer or shorter than the 15 year norm are listed in the table below. However, relevant Library Service Managers make proposals for withdrawal of print holdings on a title by title basis, and therefore for retention of longer or shorter runs based on usage.
Subject | Holdings |
---|---|
Art & Design | No discard of back runs |
Business & Management trade journals | 5 years |
Computing | 5 years |
Consumer Protection/Consumer Law/Trading Standards | 10 years |
Engineering | 10 years |
Education | 25 years |
Event management | 2 years |
Fashion/clothing business | 10 years |
Humanities | 25 years |
Information & Communications | 10 years |
Psychology | 25 years |
Science | 10 years |
Social Sciences & Social Care | 25 years |
There is normally no consultation where electronic access is the norm and electronic archival access is guaranteed. Where appropriate, however, consultation over dead runs will be initiated.
The Library undertakes to dispose of material in the most appropriate way:
May 2016