Introduction

This chapter discusses in more detail the types of library services provided within the different library sectors that currently operate. It is true to say that there are some functions that operate across sectors: these will be discussed generically first, before considering the unique aspects of the sectoral libraries, such as public, national, school and special libraries.

Circulation and lending

Circulation and lending are functions that operate across many sectors. Books and other resources can be borrowed from public libraries, school libraries, academic libraries and special libraries such as workplace libraries. The basic starting point for all libraries that operate this function is that of providing a service to a specific user community. This is a very important point, as no library exists to allow people to walk in, take a book and walk out without ascertaining whether the borrower has privileges or not, even in the most open of library sectors, public libraries.

The function of a circulation and lending library is to ensure books are appropriately catalogued, classified and processed, making them available for the user community the library serves. The key emphasis here is on circulation, since the librarian desires books not to simply sit on the shelves but to be put to good use by borrowers.

Circulation control, whereby the librarian has an efficient means of knowing which items are borrowed, by whom and for how long, is very important. This knowledge becomes management information that can inform library decision-making, since from these statistics the librarian can ascertain any subject areas that seem especially popular, and as importantly identify areas of stock that are not popular and that may need weeding. This can be done by the automated library management system (LMS) which will be discussed in its wider context in Part 5, Library Technologies. In terms of circulation and lending the LMS must record very specific aspects of information: