Holidays are coming On Demand Christmas Operating times

On Demand - open order

It is December, which means holidays are coming!

Published date:

The British Library’s site in Boston Spa, Yorkshire will be closed from Saturday 23 December to Wednesday 27 December inclusive and on Monday 1 January. This includes the processing of British Library On Demand orders from our physical collections and third-party suppliers, our Customer Services and the Reading Rooms at Boston Spa.

You will still be able to order items from our electronic stores for immediate download.

On Demand order processing

We will stop processing British Library On Demand orders from our physical collections and third-party suppliers at 02.30 GMT on Saturday 23 December and resume our usual service at 08.00 GMT on Thursday 28 December. Order processing will stop again from 02.30 GMT on Saturday 30 December to 08.00 GMT on Tuesday 2 January.

If we receive your order after 02.30 on 23 December, we won’t start processing it and delivery speeds will not be timed until we reopen on 29 December. Similarly, if we receive your order after 02.30 on Saturday 30 December, processing and timing will not start until we reopen on 2 January at 08:00. This includes orders with 2-hour and 24-hour delivery speeds.

This closure will be reflected in the despatch dates estimated by our online ordering interface. If you require further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We wish you all a pleasant festive period, a Merry Christmas and a happy new year.

News stories

Open access

British Library On Demand opening hours for May Spring Bank holiday

9 May 2018

The UK’s May spring bank holiday is Monday 28 May this year, so most On Demand services will stop from 02.00 on 26 May to when we re-open at 08.00 on 29 May

FileOpen Document Delivery software is to be withdrawn

14 March 2018

The FileOpen encryption option is being withdrawn on 1 June 2018 to provide you with a more streamlined and efficient service while retaining delivery options which do not require additional plug-ins.

A Customer Service Excellence Trophy at the British Library at Boston Spa

A third full Customer Service Excellence Accreditation at the British Library

19 January 2018

British Library Customer Services, Document Delivery and Digitisation Services North have been accredited with the full Customer Services Excellence award.

See also

Case studies

Jennifer Perkins of Clio Software
…Working with the British Library has been the best co-operative development I’ve ever experienced…

Jennifer Perkins from Clio tells us why her customers have seen a 75% reduction in failed requests since they integrated their Interlibrary Loans software with British Library On Demand

Tracey Clarke and colleague of the University of Sheffield
…British Library On Demand is a major pillar in our strategy, without it we couldn’t provide the service we do…

For the University of Sheffield, British Library On Demand does more than just supply articles. Their relationship with the British Library enables them to come good on their core promise to students and researchers.