Southampton Library Services is committed to removing barriers that may prevent students, staff or visitors from making the most of our services. Below are some examples of adjustments that can be made to improve access to Southampton Library Services.
Each library site has a Library Services Accessibility contact listed below who can discuss available
support to enable you to make best use of the Library ie bringing materials to you, assisting with
printing, etc.
Hartley Library Libenqs@soton.ac.uk Health Services Library hslib@soton.ac.uk National Oceanographic
Library nol@noc.soton.ac.uk Winchester School of Art wsaenqs@soton.ac.uk
You can keep library material until the due date, unless it is recalled by another customer. If you require a longer loan period or your material has been recalled, please contact the library Help Desk at +44 (0)23 8059 2180Call: +44 (0)23 8059 2180 when it is open, for further assistance.
We can help you by posting library material to an address of your choice or providing scans in various formats of material (copyright permitting). To request a postal loan or digitised document: 1. Login to the online catalogue with your user ID and password and check on the availability of what you need. 2. Select ‘Requests & Document Supply’. 3. Select ‘Request Something From Our Collections or Not in Our Collections’. 4. Supply us with your address (use Comments field) and submit your request.
The help desks in each library offers a service for customers who require assistance which includes accompanying you while you browse, helping you to navigate the book sequence and getting material in advance for you to collect. We advise that you contact the help desk in advance.
University policy states that all customers with a requirement for support with evacuation should have a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP). Your PEEP will give you full instructions on what to do in an emergency. If you are a regular customer of the library, we advise that you to get in touch with the Library Services Accessibility contact to discuss any other needs you may have.
The library has resources available to all students and researchers to improve accessibility to information. Course content provided on Blackboard can be downloaded in a range of formats. Other digital files can also be converted to other file types that may be more suitable for your use.
Convert PDFs, JPEGs and other files into formats such as text, e-book, audio, braille etc using the Blackboard Ally File Transformer.
More information about this service can be found on the Blackboard Student Guide page.
You can make an accessible copy if you own the copyright (e.g. it’s your own work), have permission from the copyright holder, if the copyright has expired, or if it’s for someone with a disability. If so you need to agree that:
The University of Southampton endeavours to ensure that our buildings are accessible to all. However, due to the physical layout some Library sites are not fully accessible to wheelchair users or those with mobility difficulties.
In many cases, this is because there is no safe evacuation route in case of emergencies, other than using the stairs. In the event of a fire, you will hear a loud continuous bell and should leave the building immediately via the nearest fire exit. Only specially adapted lifts should be used during a fire. If you are planning to make regular use of a Library site and cannot self-evacuate using the stairs, please arrange a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP)via the Student Disability & Wellbeing. They will liaise with your School to arrange a PEEP and to develop it with your agreement.
The information below covers accessible entrances to the Library site, safe evacuation routes, and accessible toilet facilities. Southampton has worked with AccessAble to provide a more detailed access guide for staff, students and visitors.
If you have a difficulty using the stairs, it is advisable not to use Level 3, 4, or 5 after 16:30 Monday to Friday or on the weekends because we cannot guarantee there will be enough trained staff on duty to assist your evacuation. On request, the Help Desk staff can arrange for collecting resources for you from the upper levels. If you are on Level 1 or 2, you can use the fire exits to leave the building safely. These exits lead out of the building at ground level. Staff will inform you when it is safe to return to the building. On exiting the building, please go to the fire assembly point by the flagpole outside the library by Building 85 Life Sciences.
Wheelchair Users and Other Mobility Impairments
If you are a wheel chair user or have restricted mobility, we would encourage you to find a study
space close to a refuge, from which you can self-evacuate or wait for evacuation assistance by
trained staff. Each refuge is equipped with an emergency telephone and information giving the
location in the building of the refuge. Refuges are fire and smoke protected and you should be safe
to remain in a refuge area for up to half an hour. Fire service personnel should be on site within
ten minutes. There is an emergency evacuation lift accessible from all floors and a fire refuge on
Levels 3, 4 and 5. Please familiarise yourself with the location of the evacuation lift and fire
refuges. In the event of a fire alarm sounding, you should follow the actions agreed in your PEEP.
If you can self-evacuate from your wheelchair or can move slowly unassisted, make your way to the
nearest refuge. Security and emergency teams will check each refuge as part of their emergency
procedure.
Sensory Impairment
If you have a hearing impairment that prevents you from hearing the emergency alarms, please speak
with the Help Desk team on Level 2. We recommend studying within a view of a fire beacon device,
located on all floors, to enable you to have a visual alert to an evacuation.
Library staff will direct you towards the exit and you are then required to move towards the fire
assembly point which in the car park opposite the South
Academic Block entrance.
An intermittent bell indicates a fire alarm has been triggered in an adjacent area, but you do not
need to evacuate. If you have already agreed a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) for areas
of the building you normally visit/occupy then you should continue to use it
Fire Alarm
The following plan is for anyone who cannot manage stairs, and will require assisted escape. Anyone with vision/hearing impairment should always be accompanied by an assistant (buddy system). Note: if you use a wheelchair, you must be able to self transfer from your chair to the evacuation chair. National Oceanography Centre Southampton (NOCS) Security staff are not trained to lift people. If that is not the case then please contact Reception for further advice.
When the fire alarm sounds, please make your way to a refuge point. These are easily recognizable by specific signs (blue background with white wheelchair sign) and are located within the stairwell at each level of the building. Your refuge point will offer a minimum of 30 minutes protection against the spread of fire and smoke.
The evacuation chairs are single user operation type, and are located in each node stairwell on level 6. A member of our trained Security team will meet you in the refuge point with the evacuation chair. You will need to sit on the evacuation chair. NOCS Security staff will then get you out of the building.
Fire Refuges
Wheelchair users
Trained staff will be on hand shortly to operate the lift and ensure your safe evacuation. The
evacuation chairs are single user operation type, and are located in each node stairwell on level 6.
You will need to sit on the evacuation chair. NOCS Security staff will then get you out of
the building. If you are directly threatened by the fire (smoke/fumes) or other emergency whilst on
the way to or inside a lift refuge, your first choice should be to try to get to a different refuge
space, if it is safe to do so.
Self evacuate
If you can self-evacuate from your wheelchair, or have a temporary mobility impairment and can move
slowly unassisted then you should make your way to the nearest emergency staircase or other
protected area.
First Aid
The NOCS Security staff are all trained first-aiders. If you
find yourself in difficulty please report to the Help Desk and a member of staff will contact
a first-aider immediately.
There are five exits spread between Libraries 1 and 2 and you should familiarise yourself with
these.
A fire refuge point is situated at the top of the staircase outside Library 1 in West Side Building.
Refuges are fire and smoke protected and you should normally be safe to remain in a refuge area for
up to half an hour. If you are directly threatened by the fire (smoke/fumes) or other emergency
whilst on the way to or inside a refuge, your first choice should be to try to get to a different
refuge space if it is safe to do so. Wheelchair Users At the present time Wheelchair Users who
cannot leave their chairs are advised not to come above ground level in West Side Building. You will
need to agree to a PEEP. First Aid There is no designated first-aider present in the Library,
however there are a number of staff located within the Westside building that have first-aid
training. If you find yourself in difficulty please report to the Loans Desk or one of the Library
offices and a member of staff will contact a first-aider immediately.