Senate House Library’s future has finally been decided, and will see a reduction of library space and a move towards reliance on electronic resources.

The field of options to save the library, which loses more than £1m a year and lost a crucial government grant in 2008, had been narrowed down to three.

They were a continuation of the status quo but with cuts to service provision and space, a change to a research-based library run by the School of Advanced Study, and a bid from UCL to take over the collection and merge it with its own libraries, to which all University of London students would have access.

By choosing the first option, the trustees have agreed to implement staff cuts and reduce the number of books held in the central library. The library will also take up less space in the iconic Senate House building. They aim to get rid of the library’s recurring deficit by 2012-13.

ULU President Kamran Ansari said: “I’m pleased to see that, in the first instance, SHL isn’t being dissolved, so that in itself is a great victory for students.

“There is, however, a slight point of concern – will the colleges then look to provide alternative spaces when SHL space is reduced?”

UCL Education Officer Ed Steward said: “UCL Union are extremely disappointed in the decision over ULRLS and we feel that it is a mistake. The reduction of Library space and removal to store of print holdings is wholly irreconcilable with the needs and wishes of its users, which we do not feel have been taken into consideration.

“The UCL bid was one of vision and progress, with student interests at its core; the actual outcome can now only result in a reduction in the standard of the facility. It is a deeply regrettable decision.”

The university’s Board of Trustees announced their decision on May 13^th, but UCL Provost Malcolm Grant had already admitted defeat in an email to all staff.

“I still believe it is by far the most powerful vision and the University’s consultants confirmed that it could be the most cost-effective over time of all the options. Yet we were unsuccessful,” he said. “Despite powerful support from the London School of Economics, Heads of the smaller colleges were worried that this might spell the end of the Federal University and were unwilling to support it.” 

Smaller colleges have long suspected Grant of trying to take over the University of London ever since the UCL chief published a report in 2005 calling for it to be broken up and for many of its most prized assets to be handed to UCL.

Senate House Library remains one of the most enduring symbols of the federal university, and is seen as a key reason for its continued existence.

However, last year the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) – which administers government funding for universities – withdrew Senate House Library’s national research library status, stripping it of substantial funding and plunging its future into uncertainty. External consultants CHEMS were called in to review the library’s finances, and warned it could not continue on its current basis.

Details of the Board of Trustee’s decision:

Known as ‘Refocusing the ULRLS’, the decision involves staff, space and other savings.

It aims to eliminate the recurrent deficit by 2012-13 and “establish a balanced and sustainable budget containing College and the SAS contributions at acceptable levels.”

Colleges and the SAS will have to cover transitional costs.

Between 2009 and 2014 there will be:

• a reduction of Library space in 2010 following the completion of the refurbishment and upgrading of facilities in Senate House;
• a reduction in the Federal print holdings by de-duplication, deselection, and removal to store, as part of an agreed Collection Development Strategy. This means resources can be directed strategically, in line with the research and learning needs of both the SAS and the Colleges, thus exploiting the strengths of all their libraries and providing efficiencies for Colleges and potential savings;
• a gradual but marked shift to increased reliance on e-resources and digitised materials over the planning period;
• Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with Colleges and the SAS, including the development of consortia for the purchase and delivery of e-resources; for collection development/management and storage; and for the digitisation/preservation of archives and special collections;
• a new Library Strategic Planning Board, reporting directly to the Collegiate Council, responsible for the development and implementation of the Strategic Plan.