After the service was suspended in the wake of Covid-19 restrictions, Dorset Council is very pleased to be able to reintroduce reservations at libraries across the county.
This means that from Monday 14 September, residents will be able to start reserving items again from the library catalogue, for pick up from libraries in Dorset. Library visitors will also be able to make reservations in person at their local branch.
Reservation Process
We expect this to be in big demand so we have had to place a temporary limit of 10 reservations per library member at any one time to ensure everyone gets the best chance of reserving the item you want. The pick-up library will notify you when your reserved item becomes available for collection and employees are looking forward to welcoming you back.
In line with the reinstatement of the service, from the same date we will also be:
- Reinstating the regular loan periods (e.g. 21 days for books, 7 or 14 days for DVDs). This means we will be removing the temporary 28-day loan period and;
- Reintroducing overdue charges and hire fees where relevant in order to ensure the best availability of our most popular titles.
Further Advice
Before visiting a library to collect a reserved item we strongly recommend checking the opening hours first as most libraries are operating on revised hours. Books can be returned 24 hours a day via the return boxes, which also means you do not need to enter the building.
If you are not sure whether you still want to borrow items you have previously requested, please log on to your library account and cancel anything that you no longer need to help your library service focus resources on items that customers still wish to borrow.
To avoid overdue charges please check your library account to see when they are due back and renew them if necessary. You can do this via www.librarieswest.org.uk or by using the LibrariesWest app. The online service is friendly and easy to use, and any outstanding charges can be paid online by logging on to your account.
Please be aware that any items that were already overdue on March 18 2020 and are still out on loan will have started accruing overdue charges from Monday 17 August. Overdue charges were paused between March 18 and August 16, so you will not be charged for this period.
Cllr Jill Haynes, Portfolio Holder for Customer and Community Services at Dorset Council, said:
“We’re delighted to reintroduce the reservation system at our libraries so that Dorset residents can borrow the books they want.
It’s also worth noting that thousands of e-books, e-audiobooks, and even magazines, newspapers and comics are available to download for free online. Whether you’re looking for the latest issue of BBC Good Food magazine, today’s edition of The Guardian, or a great book to read or listen to just visit www.librarieswest.org.uk for more information.
I’d also like everyone to tell your friends and family to join LibrariesWest online for free by visiting the website. Once they are ready to visit a library again, new members who have joined online can call in to a library to upgrade their membership so they can also borrow physical items such as books, DVDs and Talking Books.”
