1. Walton Library
Erika Gwynnett
Medical Librarian

2. Drivers for change - physical
 Clusters outside the library/inadequate IT
facilities
 Compact shelving breaking the floor(!)
 Desk distant from entrance
 Only 2 tiny study rooms
 Staff accommodation split up

3. Drivers for change - institutional
 Increased number of medical students
 Small increase in dental students with more
to come
 Changes in teaching and learning styles

4. “The library is very drab”
MBBS student
“Why is everything painted sludge
green?”
Yr2 Biomedical Sciences student

8. The options
 Relocate to ground floor
 New build
 Re-develop existing location

9. Planning
 1st
meeting – Sept 1996
 Feasibility study – Sept 2002
 Agreement to proceed – January 2003

10. Funding
 HEFCE funding for additional student
numbers
 Capital project allocations
 “Headroom” (strategic development) funding
 £450K from Marjorie Robinson bequest
= £1.5m

11. What did we want?
 Flexible proportion of space/study places
 Good noise management
 Increase study spaces
 Reduce periodical shelving
 More group rooms
 Disabled accessibility
 Better enquiry desk

12. What else did we want?
 Informal areas – reading/café/toilets/sofas(!)
 Better IT – clusters, wireless, laptop stations
 NHS IT provision
 Better staff facilities

13. Making it happen
 NO LIBRARY CLOSURE - AT ALL!!
- 5 phases
- spaced over 18 months
- starts June 2003, finish Sept 2004
- spaced to avoid assessment periods
 Pre-work
- lots of meetings with stakeholders
- lots of items into storage

14. “Any change, even a change for the
better, is always accompanied by
drawbacks and discomfort”
Arnold Bennett

19. Problems
 Noise
 Dirt and dust
 Diminishing services
 Loss of power/light/water
 ‘slippage’
 Lack of control

26. Communicating with our users
 Noticeboard with information and contact
details
 Good signage
 Newsletters

27. Problems
 Overspend
 Overrun
 Snagging

28. What evolved…
 Changes in practice
 Design no longer appropriate

37. Advice….
 Don’t believe them!
 Keep people informed
 Allow for much longer for snagging

38. Advice…
 Buy your staff lots of chocolate
 Wear kevlar to work
 Give up trying to do library work.

39. Congratulate yourselves!

43. Have a party!

47. The future
 Finish the snagging list
 Look more creatively at spaces
 Experiment and recognise the need to
change
 Look after the virtual library

48. Thank you!