Three people sitting at a table in front of a bookcase.

Visiting the archive and library

The Reading Room

The Museum of English Rural Life’s and the University Special Collections’ library books and archives can be viewed in our Reading Room.

Visits to view archives must be booked a minimum of one week in advance. This is because not all material is here onsite, and collections from our off-site store are only made once a week.

Visiting to use our Open Access Library does not require pre-booking; however, if you require a desk space for research, please do book in advance.

All researchers are required to register prior to their first visit. Each researcher in a group must register individually. Please note, the Reading Room is a quiet work space and not suitable for group working which requires discussion.

Our Reading Room is for researchers accessing our collections – please see here for an alternative quiet study space.

Children aged 11 to 16 are permitted if accompanied by an adult at all times, and will be subject to Reading Room conditions.

Reading Room Opening Times

The Reading Room is open Tuesday – Friday, 9:30am – 4:30pm.

We remain open over lunchtime, however, we cannot retrieve further archives from the stores between 1-2pm.

Reading Room Closures

Christmas closure: Thursday 24 December 2026 – Friday 1 January 2027

Easter closure: Friday 26 – Wednesday 31 March 2027.

Booking your visit

All visitors accessing material from the collections need to register pre-first visit and produce photo ID on arrival (pre-existing researchers may be required to re-register).

Please book your visit at a minimum of a week in advance, as space is limited.

To reserve a place, email merl@reading.ac.uk with:

  • The preferred date and time you would like to visit – please await confirmation before planning your travel
  • Specific material requests, using the reference codes provided on the entries in our online catalogue

Please note, our online catalogue provides details of holdings across all University of Reading libraries and campuses – use the drop-down list (next to the Home icon) to limit your search. Material identified as within the MERL library or Special Collections can be accessed in the reading room and cannot be transferred through the inter-library loan system. We will assess your requests and advise you on availability.

We require the specific reference number for your material. In this example, TR FOW refers to only one part in ten of the Fowler collection – thousands of records; to request an appropriate volume of material, provide the full reference number, and the “Level of description” should read ‘file’.

Items listed in the catalogue as Open Access (listed under the Status or Location heading) do not need to be pre-ordered; however, pre-booking of desk space is advisable. Reference codes provided on the online library catalogue system will identify the location and we can provide an Open Access map if you require guidance.

Why do I have to pre-order material?

MERL Library and Special Collections are housed in multiple store rooms, on 3.5km of roller racking and in two buildings, one of which is off-site. Some collections are stored in hundreds of boxes, containing thousands of documents. Please provide your reference codes a minimum of a week before your booking – we collect off-site material only once a week.

An image showing numerous rows of roller racking disappearing into the distance. A blue ladder at the far end is dwarfed by the height of the racks.
The highest roller racking shelves of our off-site store are accessed via archive platform ladders or by using specialist equipment.
A tall metal bookshelf, with 8 bays, each with 10 shelves full of books, towers towards an industrial roof.
Bookshelves at our off-site store hold approximately 3000 books per row. We hold over 100,000 books across our various stores.
An image showing roller racking on either side housing one of the Special Collections, stored on 108 shelves, in 864 boxes.
One of the Special Collections stored on site, on two of approximately 100 rows of roller racking. Each box can contain hundreds of documents.

Copying Services

We do not have a photocopier available for researcher use. Photocopies or PDF scans of material can be ordered through our copying service. Please provide the reference codes of the specific material of interest. This service can take up to 20 working days but is often completed much faster.

Digital photography using your own equipment is permitted subject to conditions – please request permission before taking photographs.

Photographs or scanned images may not be reproduced or published in any format without prior agreement, including online or on social media.

Terms & conditions and prices for scanning/self-photography can be found on our Copying Services page.

Frequently Asked Questions: