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Special Edition: Martyrs Kirk Research Library

Image by Laurence Winram You can also view this newsletter online. The refurbishment of the former Martyrs Church on North Street is now almost complete, and the building will reopen soon as the Martyrs Kirk Research Library.

It will consist of two reading rooms: a Research Reading Room (occupying the former church) and a Special Collections Reading Room (in the church hall). At the rear of the building there will also be a Seminar Room for Library staff to use as a teaching space.

When will it open?

Work is nearing completion and we hope that we will be able to provide access to the Research Reading Room from Monday 23rd September. The project architects are Page\Park of Glasgow, who have done an excellent job on the design, and worked very hard with the University's Estates and Library teams to prepare the building for opening in time for the new Academic Year. The Special Collections Reading Room will require a later start date than the Research Reading Room, due to the recruitment and training of staff. This is especially important as Special Collections will be operating in a new way, with regular van runs to deliver requested material from offsite storage. We anticipate starting our Special Collections service from Monday December the 2nd.

The detail - Research Reading Room

Occupying the original church, the Research Reading Room consists of 40 study spaces. Each bespoke desk has been built using solid oak, and provides a generous work surface finished with leather. All 40 desks have power points, individual lighting and in-desk individual heating that allows for boosts on chilly winter mornings.

Under construction inside the Research Reading Room

Who can use it?

The Research Reading Room will be open to all PhD students, members of academic and academic-related staff.

How do I get in?

The main entrance doors from North Street will be unlocked when we have staff on site (Monday-Friday 9.30am-4.30pm). In evenings and at weekends, entry from the street will be by swipe access so please remember your ID card. However, it's likely that the front doors to the building will be card-controlled at all times, until we have Special Collections staff on site in early December. Once inside the building, the second door to the right of the foyer will allow access to the Research Reading Room. This will be card-controlled at all times in order that only those entitled to use this space have access.

Floor plan of Martyrs

What will the opening hours be?

We intend to offer access to the Research Reading Room 8am-10pm Monday-Friday and 10am-10pm at weekends, all year round. However, until the additional staff required to support the operation of Martyrs are recruited, we will be offering reduced access to the Research Reading Room for the first few weeks of its operation. These will be 9.30am-8pm Monday-Friday, with the building closing at weekends.

Will desks be allocated?

No. Study desks in the Research Reading Room will be available on a first-come firstserved basis.

Will there be Library staff in the Research Reading Room?

No. The reading room has been designed so that it can be used by researchers on a selfservice basis.

Will there be any books and journals there and can they be borrowed?
Material in the Research Reading Room will consist of a selection of reference materials, including a number of serial publication runs requested by research users. If you have access to the Research Reading Room and would like to make suggestions for material to be transferred there, you will be able to do so by contacting our Collections team on libcollteam@st-andrews.ac.uk. None of the collections in the Martyrs Kirk Research Library can be borrowed. The Library will not initially provide a retrieval and delivery service to Martyrs of materials from the main collections at other Library sites. Users should keep in mind that all material located in Martyrs will still be subject to recall to the Main Library. We do not expect to have the final arrangement of stock in place immediately once access to the Research Room has started but will be working to achieve this as soon as possible thereafter.

Will there be wireless access, PCs and print/copy/scan facilities?

Yes, wireless access will be available throughout the Martyrs building. There will be 2 PCs in the Research Reading Room available on a first-come first-served basis. These will be located in a room towards the back of the Reading Room alongside a multi-functional device for printing, copying and scanning.

Under construction, image of Research Reading Room with church organ pipes

Will I be able to eat and drink in Martyrs?

There will be space outside of the reading rooms where you can take a break from your studies and have a coffee and cold snacks (no hot food). Only bottled water will be allowed in the Research Reading Room, and no food or drink will be allowed in the Special Collections Reading Room.

What about noise? Will I be able to talk in the Reading Room?

No. We believe that as a research-focused reading room, the area should be silent. As with the Main Library silent zones, phones can be used for non-call functions in the Reading Room providing that they are switched to silent. You will be able to make calls in the foyer area of the building.

The detail - Special Collections Reading Room

The new Special Collections Reading Room will be based in the former church hall,

on the left hand side of the building. This will open to the public once the staff have been recruited and trained and the delivery process has been refined. As already indicated, we do not anticipate our new Special Collections service starting in Martyrs until Monday 2nd December - though the Research Reading Room should be open from Monday 23rd September.

Who can use it?

Anyone can consult Special Collections material as we are custodians of public records. All you need to do is to register as a reader, which you can do at the reception desk.

What are the opening hours?

We anticipate offering a Reading Room service Monday-Friday 9.30am-4.30pm.

Will there be staff to help me?

Yes. During opening hours, members of Special Collections staff will be on site, although most of the team will still be based at the Library Annexe on the North Haugh.

What can I use?

You'll need to identify the material of interest to you by searching our catalogues before you visit. There will be a small library of reference works available for use in the Reading Room without appointment.

Dr Norman Reid consulting text, photo by Peter Adamson

How will I access the collections?

To consult original material in our new Reading Room, you will need to make an advance booking no later than the day before you intend to visit, to tell us what you want to see. We will check that it is available and in good condition and will arrange for it to be brought to Martyrs for you to use. This is necessary since our Special Collections will remain in secure storage remote from Martyrs.

How many deliveries will there be each day?

We expect to provide one daily delivery of requested material to the Special Collections Reading Room in time for opening at 9.30am.

New Park Seminar Room

This well-equipped teaching space has been generously supported by the New Park Educational Trust. It will allow the use of Special Collections material in teaching delivered to students at all levels in the University as well as to community groups. It will also be used by other Library staff for classes and training.

We look forward to welcoming you to this much-needed and rather special addition to the Library's estate.

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Questions: Please email librarynewsletter@st-andrews.ac.uk Web: http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/library/ Address: University of St Andrews Library, North Street, St Andrews KY16 9TR, Scotland Tel: +44 (0)1334 462283 Images: Laurence Winram, Peter Adamson, University of St Andrews, Elizabeth Andrews, iStockphoto, www.morguefile.com. The University of St Andrews is not responsible for the content of external websites accessed via links in this enewsletter.