Special Collections re-opens for researchers

Our Research Centre has opened spaces for four researchers in the Brotherton room – alongside virtual consultations and no-charge photos on request.

Special Collections is now open to researchers, with sessions running from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 4pm, Monday to Thursday. Due to the limited capacity, we will prioritise researchers from the University of Leeds. 

Book your space and request the items you wish to consult using our new online “visitor basket” while browsing our collections.

The new online booking and request system allows you to choose materials as you search our collections and then book a preferred date to visit. We’ll then contact you to confirm your visit date. You can find guidance on using the new online booking system in our Plan a visit webpages.

If you’re not able to visit in person, we are offering virtual consultations for researchers to quickly access materials. We’ll show the items live using Microsoft Teams for up to an hour per session. Contact us to arrange a consultation.

You are also able to request mobile phone quality photos of material for individual research at no charge. We can photograph materials for up to an hour at a time. Contact us to request photos. If the material is too fragile or large to photograph safely, we will let you know so you can request high-quality images through our Digitisation Service. Charges will apply for digitisation.

We are still open online where you can search, browse and filter digitised parts of the collection online.