Library and learning services

If you are a current student or staff member, you can use the 'Sign on' link in the top right-hand corner to access both your library account and electronic resources, using your normal Kingston University computing username and password. Click on 'Sign in' and then 'Kingston University Students and Staff' before clicking on 'My account' to view your record and renew your books. 

If you are an external member of our libraries, you can go to iCat and use the ' sign-in link in the top right-hand corner and select 'SCONUL Access and other external members' to access your library account. You will need to have signed in before clicking on 'My account' to view your record. External members will have no access to e-resources.

You need your library PIN to borrow books from the library self-issue machines.

Please ask a member of staff for your PIN and then reset it. You can reset your PIN via the Library (iCat) catalogue.

We email a weekly statement to you every Monday showing you what items you currently have on loan from the library. We also email out notices about items that need to be returned (so you can avoid fines). To ensure you receive these, please ensure you keep your address and personal email address up to date. We cannot take responsibility if notifications are not received.

As well as this, you can see what items are on loan to you at any time by looking in the 'My Account' area on iCat.

You will be sent an email when a reservation is ready for collection. Otherwise, you can check if an item is ready to collect by clicking on the 'Requests' tab on iCat:

• ‘On hold until [date]' means the item is ready to be picked up 
• 'In Process' or 'Waiting in Queue' means the item is not yet ready for collection

• current students and members of staff – 30 items at a time (Education students can borrow an additional 15 teaching resources; Music students can borrow an additional 10 scores)
• associate college students – the number of items you can borrow depends on our agreement with your college. Please contact your course administrator for further details
• SCONUL access visitors – four items at a time
• individuals and alumni – four items at a time
• corporate members – 15 items on one company ticket at a time (or you can nominate four members of staff to borrow up to four items each on separate ID cards)

Most items are loaned for either seven days or four weeks. Seven-day items have a red label above the shelf-mark.

You can borrow items using the self-service machines – you will need your ID card and your library PIN.

Most items can be returned at any of the libraries (not just the one where you borrowed the item from). Although desk loan items must be returned to the help desk in the library they were borrowed from.

You should return other items using the self-service machines in the libraries. Alternatively, when the libraries are closed, you should use the 'book drop box' near the entrance to each library. 

You can also return items by post – please send postal returns by recorded delivery, but be aware that you are responsible for the item until it is received by the library.

If iCat shows you that copies of the item should be available, you can reserve the item at the helpdesk. 

You can place a hold request on an item held at another campus and it will be sent to the campus you select for you to collect it. If the item is not on loan, you can only place a hold request at the helpdesk. If you need the item in a hurry or want to use a desk loan item, you could use the free university bus to pick it up yourself. 

If all of the copies of an item are on loan, you can place a hold request using iCat. You should select whether you wish to request a seven-day or a four-week copy.

• search for the item on iCat
• sign in (you may need to re-enter your K number and computer password if you are off campus)
• click on 'Request' and select the campus where you would like to collect the item
• click 'Hold' to confirm your request

Please note: you can choose to place a hold request on any item, but the item that is returned first (of the same type) will be held for you to collect. 

Please also note: if a queue of people are waiting for a four-week item, you will only be able to borrow it for one week.

You cannot place a hold request on desk loan and reference items.

We will email you when your reservation is ready for collection. It will be kept for you for seven days. You should collect the item from the requested items shelves in the library and use the self-service machine to issue the item to your borrower account.

We will automatically renew your seven-day and four-week items, unless they have been requested by someone else. An item will not be renewed if it has been requested. If this is the case, you will receive an email requesting the book be returned, allowing you time to bring the item to the library.

You need to check regularly for emails from us. These emails will inform you if an item on loan to you has not been renewed and that you are required to return it.

When your fines reach £15, you will no longer be able to borrow more items.  If you try to borrow an item using the self-service machine, you will be asked to go to the help desk and pay these fines to unblock your borrower account.

Loans from main collections incur fines of £1 a day from the day an item is overdue. There is a seven-day suspended fines period, where fines will be waived if returned within that time.

Desk loan items have fines of 60p an hour for every hour the item is overdue.

Laptop loans incur fines of £5 per part hour, once the laptop is overdue.

Desk loans are fined when the library help desk is open. They continue to be fined over the weekends if the library is open. However, other loans only incur fines on weekdays, unless all the libraries are closed, for example, on certain Bank Holidays.

Desk loan items and laptop loans need to circulate around large groups of students as quickly as possible, so that everyone has a chance to use them in time to do a piece of work. The higher rate reflects the higher demand and the need for fast circulation.

Fines are only added to your account once the item is returned or renewed. You can use 'My Account' on iCat to see what fines you may have incurred. Fines due on your current loans will show next to the due date for each item. Other outstanding charges can be seen by selecting the 'Fines' tab.

You can pay your total outstanding fine online by signing in to your account on iCat, going to 'My account', 'Fines' and then 'Pay fine'. Fines can also be paid at the library help desks in cash or by credit or debit card.

Yes, every Monday we email a statement of the items on your library account and any outstanding fines. We also send out notifications and reminders, if you have an item that needs to be returned.

Eligible members of staff and students from our partner institutions are issued with a username and password from Kingston University and are entitled to use a range of library resources and services.

To use library databases and e-resources, you need to sign in to iCat with your username and password. To borrow items from any of the four libraries, you will need your Kingston University ID card.

• 6 months – £25
• 12 months – £50

Please note: all prices are inclusive of VAT. Applicants can join the scheme in person in any of Kingston University's four libraries. Payment must be made before a library membership account can be created. We can only accept debit and credit card payments.

Non-Kingston Borough residents

• 6 months – £60
• 12 months – £120

Kingston Borough residents

• 6 months – £25
• 12 months – £50

Please note the purchasing and issuing of Individual membership is suspended between 1 April and 1 June 2025

All prices are inclusive of VAT. Applicants can join in person in any of Kingston University's four libraries. Payment must be made before a library membership account can be created. We only accept card payments.

• library members can use Kingston University Libraries during core opening hours but not during night opening
• all library members are required to comply with the 'Rules and Regulations for the use of Library Services' (part of University Regulations), a copy of which is available from the Information Centre based in each library
• the standard University rules for outstanding fines and overdue books apply
• members are reminded that the onus of obtaining copyright permission for reproduction purposes is with the member (the user) and not the library
• we do not offer any print or copy services to visitors or external library members
• we cannot offer access to computing facilities or e-resources for external library members
• membership only available to individuals over 18 years old
• information gathered as part of the membership application process will be used in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 and the Kingston University Privacy Policy to administer your use of Library facilities. Data may be passed to other University departments where necessary as part of the management of our services
• entry after 9.00pm will only be granted to Kingston University students and staff carrying a valid ID card. All visitors are requested to leave our libraries by 9.00pm during night opening hours
• we regret that Kingston University dissertations and theses are kept on closed access and are only available to current Kingston University students and staff

All four of our libraries are wheelchair accessible with hearing loops and height adjustable tables available. Disabled parking is provided at each site with accessible toilets either inside or very close to the libraries.

Detailed information is available on AccessAble:

• Knights Park Library (Dame Esteve-Coll Centre)
• Kingston Hill Library (Nightingale Centre)
• Penrhyn Road Library (Town House)
• Roehampton Vale Library (Sir Sydney Camm Centre)

Additional support services

The libraries provide a variety of additional support options designed to improve access to services and facilities for students who have been assessed by the disability and mental health team. 

Additional services include:

• Access Technology Rooms (ATR rooms) at each library site, which are equipped with:
  • TextHelp Read & Write
  • Inspiration - Mind-mapping software
  • Jaws - screen reader and magnification
  • Dragon Naturally Speaking
  • scanners
  • a CCTV Magnifier
• one-to-one library inductions and specialist support using library resources, provided by your subject librarian. Enrol on Library Canvas to find your librarian and discover library support tailored to your course
• support within the library, such as book fetching, extended loans, assistance with photocopying/scanning
• the ability to request unlocked digital versions of texts which can be used with accessibility software

Please contact [email protected] to speak to an advisor about your individual requirements.

If you have a personal evacuation plan, you should follow those guidelines during an emergency. If you do not have a personal evacuation plan and feel that you need one (for example, if you have a mobility difficulty or a hearing impairment), you should contact the disability and mental health team at [email protected] who will be able to advise you.

If you have mobility difficulties or impaired hearing, you are advised to inform the library staff on arrival so they are aware you are in the building in case of emergency evacuation. If you are hearing impaired, you are advised not to work alone on remote floors (at Penrhyn Road and Kingston Hill), as the emergency alarm system works only on an audible principle at the present time.

Lifts must not be used during an emergency or fire drill. If you are unable to use the stairs, please be aware of the designated refuge areas, which are typically located in stairwells.