New study space booking system
From Monday 8 March, booking study space will be more fair and more flexible.
Current government restrictions and social distancing guidelines mean we’re able to offer limited study space for essential use only. During this time, we have heard your feedback about the challenges of booking a study space due to availability, system issues and empty spaces resulting from last minute cancellations.
We have acted based upon your feedback and are happy to announce that there will be a brand new booking system from 9am on Monday 8 March. We will also increase the number of Covid-safe study spaces available in the Laidlaw and Edward Boyle libraries, and re-open the Health Sciences Library.
The new system offers a more flexible and fairer approach to booking, with seven days of availability and real-time booking information. This puts more control in the hands of students and improves our ability to offer space to those who need it.
The advantages include being able to book a seat on the day if there is one available. You will also be able to book a space that has been left empty if someone doesn’t use their booked session.
There’s more flexibility in the length of the study session, you can choose the length of time you need from 30 minutes up to 7 hours. You can also book up to 7 days in advance, allowing you to plan your work more effectively.
In order to give a fair chance for everybody who needs some study space to be able to book a session, there is a maximum of three bookings at any one time. As soon as one of your sessions is complete or cancelled you can make another booking.
No advance bookings available at the weekend
There will be a pause in advance bookings on Saturday and Sunday whilst we switch from using Eventbrite to using the new system.
You should continue to use Eventbrite to book space in the Edward Boyle and Laidlaw libraries for Saturday 6th, Sunday 7th and Monday 8th March. Monday’s sessions will be released on the afternoon of Friday 5th, after that you will no longer use Eventbrite.
The new system will be live on Monday for you to book spaces in the Edward Boyle, Laidlaw and Health Sciences libraries from Tuesday onwards.
We will monitor the use of the new system carefully, and will be seeking student feedback on how the system is working in practice, and we will make adjustments where necessary to make it as fair as possible for the greatest number of people.
Key information about the new system
Full information and instructions about the system will be found on the Study space webpages from 9am on Monday 8 March, when the system is live.
In the new system, you will choose a numbered seat in the Library and how long you want to study, up to a maximum of 7 hours per day.
You can have up to three bookings at any one time. As soon as one of your sessions is complete or cancelled you can make another booking.
You will need check-in to your seat when you begin your study. If you do not check in after 30 minutes of your session starting, it will be cancelled and the session will be made available for someone else to book.
Space is limited and in demand, so cancel your session if you can’t attend to allow someone else to access the space. You can also check-out if you decide to end your session early, making the space available for someone else.
Despite the hope on the horizon given by the vaccine, we still need to do our part to stop the spread of the virus. Please use the wipes available in the Library to wipe down your desk at the start and end of your study session. All other Covid-safety rules remain in place.
