College today extended opening hours of the libraries starting on Monday, to support students finishing assignments and preparing for exams.
The Berkeley, Lecky, Ussher and Hamilton libraries will be open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, and counter services will be open from 11am to 3pm. Opening times after May 24th will be 9.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Kinsella Hall will be open from 9am until 10pm from Monday to Friday, and from 8am to 10pm on weekends.
The John Stearne Medical Library will be open from 9.30am until 4pm, Monday to Friday, while the 1937 Reading Room will remain open from 8am until 10pm, Monday to Sunday.
Manuscripts and Archives and Early Printed Books will be open in the Old Library two days a week from 10.30am to 12.15pm and 1.15pm to 3pm. Students must make an appointment to access the reading rooms at these times.
Finally, the Map Library will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2pm until 3.45pm.
In an email to staff and students today, College archivist and librarian Helen Shenton said: “I am very pleased to announce that from Monday 26th April there will be further reopening of the Library.”
“This is to support our students as they finish assignments and prepare for their assessments. From next week, students will have increased access to safe study spaces and counter services will also be available.”
“This schedule will remain in place over the summer, supporting our researchers, through to the beginning of the new academic year”, she added.
She also emphasised that pre-booking of study spaces is “essential”.
“I feel this term has been particularly challenging for us all, with the continuous Level 5 lockdown restrictions in place”, she said.
“On behalf of everyone in the Library, I would like to wish our students well in their revision and assessment in the coming weeks.”
In a statement to The University Times, Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) President Eoin Hand said: “It is great to see the increased provisions of library services for students coming into the exam period.”
“This is something we at TCDSU have been working on proactively with Library Management, and are glad to see it come to fruition”, he added. “We hope to continue working for and providing much needed services like this for students and to continue to offer as much support as possible for the rest of the academic year.”
Students who wish to use the library must currently book a space in advance, and cannot use the same space for longer than an hour and 45 minutes.
The scan on demand, “chat with us” and postal delivery services are also still in operation. Click and collect will return to storage material only, and open shelf materials will open for self-service borrowing.
