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Service standards

Our standards and performance targets

We are committed to providing all of our customers with the best possible support services that we can offer.

Our standards set performance targets for our core services, and provide users with information on the level of service they can expect.

We are committed to monitoring and reviewing our targets, and reporting the results, on a regular basis. 

Access to our libraries and resources

Our promise to you:

  • Our libraries will always be accessible during our advertised opening times.
  • We will publish any changes to our opening hours on our web pages and social media accounts 

Enquiries and support

Our promise to you:

  • Our staff will be available online during our advertised staffed opening times
     
  • If your enquiry cannot be answered by the Student Connect staff, you will be referred to an Academic Librarian and Skills Tutor who will be available Monday- Friday between 9am and 5pm. 

  • Outside of these hours we will make an appointment for you to meet with an Academic Librarian and Skills Tutor within 2 working days of your request.

Lending support services

Our promise to you:

  • When an inter-site loan is available ‘off the shelf’, it will be ready for collection within four working days at our Stoke and Stafford libraries
     
  • We will action/approve 90% of document delivery requests within 48 hours, and 98% of requests within three working days
     
  • 99% of returned items will be back on the library shelves within 48 hours of being returned to the site libraries.
     
  • Digitised material for reading lists will be available within four weeks of a request being made. This is subject to copyright and publisher permissions.
     
  • Digitised copies of available print articles or book chapters will be supplied to off-campus customers within 5 working days.  This is subject to copyright and publisher permissions.

  • We will benchmark our charges against competitors on an annual basis to ensure we remain fair.

Library lending services

Our promise to you:

  • Our Student Connect staff will be available for online support during our advertised staffed hours.

  • Reservations will be available for collection within two working hours of being returned to a library

  • 99% of returned books will be back on the shelf within 48 working hours. (Exceptions include weekends and peak return times, such as the start and end of semesters.

  • Current issues of printed journals will be made available within 24 staffed hours of receipt.

  • Self service facilities will be available 99% of our opening hours.