Services and Programmes

Besides lending, the Library Service of the Velocity Interoperability Network provides the services below at its branches. Study places, the reference collection and the enquiry desks are open to anyone during opening hours; borrowing, reservations, study rooms and the digital collections require membership. All services are provided without charge.

Reference and enquiry service

Staff at every enquiry desk answer questions about the collections, help with searching the catalogue and the reference databases, and take enquiries that need research. Enquiries that cannot be answered at the desk are referred to the reference librarians at the Central Library and answered by email within five working days.

Study places and study rooms

The branches provide 1,180 study places in total, available to anyone during opening hours without membership. Bookable study rooms seating four to twelve people are available to members at the Central Library and the University Branch for up to three hours a day.

Children and young people

Every branch except the University Branch and the Transit Reading Room has a children's area with picture books, early readers and fiction for young people. Weekly story time sessions for children under five and homework clubs for those aged eight to fourteen begin in the week of 14 September 2026.

Reading groups

The Service hosts a monthly fiction reading group at the Central Library and a monthly non-fiction group at the University Branch, beginning in October 2026. Sets of ten copies of each month's title are held for members of the groups. Member organisations that run their own reading groups may borrow sets under institutional membership.

Official publications

Every department and office of the Network deposits two copies of each document it publishes with the Service. One copy is held at the Central Library and one at the University Branch for consultation, and a digital copy is added to the Official Publications collection. A monthly briefing on new deposits is held at the Central Library.

Inter-branch and inter-library requests

Items held at another branch are delivered to the member's chosen branch on the Tuesday and Friday deliveries. Titles the Service does not hold may be sought on loan from the libraries of member organisations under the arrangements described on the Borrowing page.

Printing, copying and scanning

Printing, copying and scanning are available at every branch except the Transit Reading Room. Members may print or copy up to forty pages a month without charge; scanning to email is free. Copying is subject to the copyright conditions displayed at each machine.

Research skills workshops

Weekly workshops at the University Branch cover searching the catalogue and databases, evaluating sources, citing official publications and managing references. Workshops are open to members and to the staff of member organisations, and places are booked by email.

Programme of sessions. The regular sessions below begin in September and October 2026. Sessions for children are attended with a parent or guardian in the case of under fives; homework clubs are supervised by branch staff. No booking is needed for story time or homework clubs; reading groups and workshops are booked by writing to the Service.

Additional sessions, visiting speakers and any change to the programme are announced in the Newsroom. Member organisations wishing to arrange a class visit or a session at their own site should write to contact@libraries.gov.vin at least three weeks in advance. Opening hours of each branch are set out on the Branches page.