Bodleian Libraries book move completed

Filled shelves at the Bodleian Libraries Book Storage Facility at Swindon.

The Bodleian Libraries’ Swindon Book Storage Facility has taken delivery of its seven millionth book – just over a year after opening its doors.

The milestone coincides with the completion of the Bodleian’s major programme of book moves to consolidate lesser used stock in the new facility. The £26m facility covers 13 acres and contains 153 miles of shelving.

Bodley’s Librarian Sarah Thomas said: 'This has been an important year in the history of the Bodleian, and it has been an extraordinary success. We have tagged and moved all our books, relocated our staff, prepared the New Bodleian building for its redevelopment, opened new facilities for readers in the heart of Oxford and refreshed and developed our IT capabilities.

'Any one of these tasks would be a major undertaking for most libraries, but thanks to a superb team of dedicated staff we have accomplished them all simultaneously without any major interruption to our day-to-day services to readers either in the University or further afield. With our new storage facility at Swindon and renewed spaces for study in place or under development in the heart of Oxford, our readers can look forward to significant enhancements to our services in 2012 and beyond.'

The Bodleian Libraries of the University of Oxford form the largest university library system in the United Kingdom. The combined library collections number more than 11 million printed items, in addition to 30,000 e-journals and other materials in different formats.