Borrowing Basics

You can borrow items using the self-service kiosks located in our Mile End, West Smithfield, and Whitechapel libraries. You will need your Queen Mary ID card. If you experience any issues while borrowing items, please speak to a staff member. 

Loan Periods

• Books are loaned for an initial period of 7 days and are continuously renewed up to 51 times unless reserved by another user
• DVDs are loaned for 7 days and cannot be renewed
• Laptops are loaned for 72 hours and cannot be renewed

Borrowing Allowances 

• 40 items for Undergraduates and Associate Students
• 40 items for Taught Postgraduates
• 40 items for Research Postgraduates and Staff
• 6 items for Interrupting Students and eligible External Borrowers

DVDs are limited to a maximum of one item at a time, with the following exceptions for Film Studies Students and Staff: 

• UG Film Studies students are entitled to borrow up to 3 DVDs 
• PGT students, PGR students, and Academic Staff within the department of Film Studies are entitled to borrow up to 5 DVDs 

Borrowed items can be returned at any Queen Mary Library site via the Self-Service Book Returns (Mile End) or Self-Service Kiosks (West Smithfield and Whitechapel) during opening times.  

Returning library loans is your responsibility and you must always be able to return items that are required by other users or reached the 51 weeks renewal limit.   

We recommend that you check your library account regularly to see if any of the items you have on loan have been reserved and are due to be returned. 

If all copies of an item you need are on loan to other readers, you can request the item by placing a hold on it and the Library will notify you by email when it becomes available.  

This does not apply to DVDs.  

To do this

• Use Library Search on our website to find the item you want
• Click the “Place Hold” button on the left of the screen
• Enter the barcode number from your ID/Library card and your library PIN 

The screen will confirm that your hold has been placed. If you get an error message, please try again, or contact the Library for help. 

Once your hold is available you can collect it from the Welcome Desk of your selected library within 3 days of receiving the email.  

You can track the hold status from your Library account. 

Library users are responsible for all items issued to their library account.  

Please contact us as soon as possible if:  

• You cannot find an item you have borrowed from the Library  
• You have returned an item but it still appears on your library account  
• You have an item on loan which you believe you have never borrowed  
• An item you borrowed has been damaged while on loan to you  

We will investigate the matter, and if the item borrowed is confirmed lost or damaged beyond repair, you will be charged with the actual cost of replacing the item up to a maximum of £50.   

Book replacement payments are made via the E-shop.  

Please note the book replacement charge is not refundable if the lost item is later found.  

Invoiced items will block your account from further borrowing and renewals so please ensure replacement costs are promptly paid. 

Library Services do not charge fines for overdue items.   

Returning library loans is your responsibility and you must always be able to return items that are required by other users or reached the 51-weeks renewal limit.  

You will receive notifications from the Library when items need to be returned and when they become overdue. If the item is not returned within 14 days, further borrowing under your Library account will be disabled.  

The Library will email a reminder for long overdue items after 4 weeks and will consider any items that have been overdue for more than 6 weeks lost. 

Non-returned items will incur a lost item replacement cost of up to £50 per item as per our Lost or Damaged Materials policy.  

Library Services will do all we can to help if you experience any difficulties returning items.