Accessing Special Collections and Archives

Special collections and archives are available for scheduled viewings Monday to Friday, 9:30am-1pm and 2pm-4:30pm.

To view items in our special collections and archives you must make an appointment for a viewing using the process in the relevant section below.

Please contact us to make your appointment as far in advance of your proposed visit as possible so that you can definitely book a space as we can be very busy and occasionally the Reading Rooms close for special events and collections care.

You must allow at least 14 days’ notice to enable us to do condition checks and so that we can check whether there are any data protection issues that may prevent your access to any items from the archives that you would like to view.

To avoid disappointment, make sure your appointment has been confirmed before you book your accommodation and travel.

If you have any questions about our special collections and archives, please email [email protected].

To make an appointment to see items from our archives, please:

You can find out about what archives we hold here.

To arrange a viewing, complete the Request to View Archives form (editable word document here) and email it to [email protected] at least 14 day's prior to your intended visit.

The Reading Rooms team will be in touch to arrange your viewing.

Access to some of the items in our archives are restricted under data protection legislation. In these cases, they may only be viewed by individuals completing historical, scientific, or statistical research and with a view to publish some journalistic, academic, artistic, or literary material that is in the public interest. This applies to many of the records we hold that were created in the last 100 years. If any of the material that you have requested does contain personal data, you will be sent an application form that enables us to check that your request is lawful.

Please note that items will be given to you in the order that you request them. 

A maximum of ten folders will be retrieved on any one day and some items are too fragile to be photographed, so please take this into consideration when planning your trip to the library.

To check in for your viewing, you must show photographic ID and proof of address.

To make an appointment to see any printed book or other item in a Special Collection, please:

You can find out about what special collections we hold here.

To arrange a viewing, complete the Request to Read Restricted Printed Collections form (editable word document here), and email it to [email protected] at least 14 day's prior to your intended visit.

The Reading Rooms team will be in touch to arrange your visit. They'll also make sure that all the items you wish to use are accessible and in reasonable condition. If there are any problems, they'll let you know in good time.

View our Printed Items Handling Guide, which you'll be asked to sign as part of your visit.

Please note that items will be given to you in the order that you request them, and also that we can only retrieve a certain number of items in a day. Our team will advise you.