Library additional study space and revised opening hours

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In response to Scottish Government guidance regarding the relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions, the Sir Alex Ferguson Library will introduce the following changes:

With effect Monday 29th March, space will be available on level 4 for students to eat their lunch if they are returning to the library after the lunch time clean that takes places between 1pm and 2pm. These must be booked. You will not be permitted to stay without a valid booking. Users must leave the space via the one way system in operation to check in for afternoon study space bookings at the library entrance. Please note that access to the building is unavailable between 1pm and 2pm. If you leave the building for any reason during the lunch booking, you will be unable to access the building until 2pm. Please ensure you take all personal belongings with you. Food delivery services are not permitted to access the building.

Additionally, from Monday 29th March there will also be 29 spaces on level 2 for silent individual study to meet the growth in demand for spaces. Please note that social distancing guidelines must be observed in both spaces and face coverings are mandatory when not eating or drinking.

Revised opening hours

With effect Tuesday 6th April, the library opening hours will be 10am – 8pm Monday to Friday and 10am – 6pm Saturday and Sunday. The library will continue to be closed between 1pm and 2pm for cleaning purposes.

Please note that that library will open 10am – 1pm and 2pm – 5pm over the Easter weekend (Friday 2nd April – Monday 5th April) for students requiring access to the click and collect service and study spaces

From Monday 26th April space will be available on level 2 for students to sit exams should they have limited space at home.

From Monday 26th April the lunchtime closure will cease.

 

Signing off

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After five years working at GCU Archive Centre and nearly a decade overall in the Sir Alex Ferguson Library and Archives, I’m leaving my post as Archive Assistant.

It may seem self-indulgent to write a valedictory going away message, but I wanted to use this a chance to reflect and be thankful for the time I have had here, the skills I’ve learned, the habits ingrained, and most importantly, the people I’ve worked with. Continue reading →

Shades of Gray – guest blog by Douglas Erskine

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We know the Oscar Marzaroli Collection is a great source of inspiration and our guest blogger, Douglas Erskine, uses one of Oscar’s photographs as the starting point for this contribution on Gray Day 2021. Douglas is a researcher and writer with a strong interest in Scottish art. He is currently preparing a monograph on the life and work of the Glasgow artist Alan Fletcher (1930-58).

Of all the images donated to Glasgow Caledonian University by the family of the great Scottish photographer Oscar Marzaroli, few are as striking as the photograph of a young Alasdair Gray posing with his cadaverous alter ego – a portrait by Alan Fletcher – at the 1959 exhibition which Gray organised in his late friend’s memory. Continue reading →

12 Days of Library Christmas: celebrating the achievements of 2020

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2020 has proven to be a year of unprecedented challenges. Everyone connected with GCU has worked hard to adapt, delivering key services to the university community online.

The Library has been no different.

With this in mind, we took to Twitter at the beginning of December to celebrate the 12 Days of Library Christmas. From 1-12 December, our daily posts highlighted the volume and scope of work undertaken by Library staff in recent months (mainly from home). Continue reading →

Sir Alex Ferguson Library Christmas and New Year opening hours

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We are pleased to announce that the Library will be open during the winter holiday period.

Please note, the Library is only open for pre-booked study spaces and to collect books via the click-and-collect system. For further guidance please see our guidance Covid-19 services webpage.

Saturday 19/12/2020 Closed
Sunday 20/12/2020 Closed
Monday 21/12/2020 10am-4pm
Tuesday 22/12/2020 10am-4pm
Wednesday 23/12/2020 10am-4pm
Thursday 24/12/2020 Closed
Friday 25/12/2020 Closed
Saturday 26/12/2020 Closed
Sunday 27/12/2020 Closed
Monday 28/12/2020 10am-4pm
Tuesday 29/12/2020 10am-4pm
Wednesday 30/12/2020 10am-4pm
Thursday 31/12/2020 Closed
Friday 01/01/2021 Closed
Saturday 02/01/2021 Closed
Sunday 03/01/2021 Closed
Monday 04/01/2021 10am-4pm
Tuesday 05/01/2021 Normal hours resume

Please remember to bring your student/staff card for access into the building.

We look forward to welcoming you over the festive period!

Keeping Scottish social enterprise stories

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It has been a memorable year and one that we will remember for the rest of our lives.  But although we have been living through the same pandemic, everybody’s experience of life under COVID-19 has been different.  Like many, the social enterprise sector has struggled with lock-down, businesses closed, staff furloughed, often relying on additional funding to keep their heads above the water.  But it has also been a time where social enterprises have come to the fore, stepping in to meet local needs and provide vital services for their communities.  Social enterprises have demonstrated their value by providing services like food for vulnerable and needy people, bikes for frontline workers, activities for children, and shown how business motivated by serving the public good, rather than self-profit, has helped strengthen communities. Continue reading →

Dawson Books in administration; potential technical issue

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Previously we wrote to advise that Dawson Books has regrettably entered administration. Any notes added to Dawsonera ebooks must be exported before Friday 31 July: read how to do this here.

We are currently working to transfer our portfolio of ebooks on this platform to another provider.

If you encounter any difficulty accessing ebooks during this time, please contact us by emailing: ertenq@gcu.ac.uk

Dawson Books in administration; how to save your notes

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Dawson Books, one of our main ebook suppliers, has sadly gone into administration. We are currently working to transfer our ebooks on the Dawsonera platform to another provider.

Unfortunately this means that any notes you have made in Dawsonera ebooks will be lost, unless you export them. This must be done by 31 July 2020 at the latest.

To export your notes from the platform, please follow these steps:

  • Search for the book in Dawsonera, or otherwise select My Account, My Bookshelf or Recently Viewed.
  • Select Read Online under the book title.
  • Select the Notes tab in the left-hand bar.
  • Select Export; your notes will be transferred to a Word document.

Alternatively, if you have used referencing software to save books, you can access the title via RefWorks then complete the final two steps above.

If you encounter any issues accessing an ebook please email: ertenq@gcu.ac.uk

Academic Librarians Online

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Library drop in sessions have finished for the summer – we are still available online

The Academic Librarians can help you find resources, use our services and online sources and with referencing.

Email us your question:

African Leadership College lib-alc@gcu.ac.uk

Glasgow School for Business and Society lib-gsbs@gcu.ac.uk

School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment lib-scebe@gcu.ac.uk

School of Health and Life Sciences lib-hls@gcu.ac.uk

Institute for University to Business Education: lib.u2b@gcu.ac.uk

 

Make an appointment for an online chat  – best for in-depth and subject specific support.  We can share screens with you and can help you with your research questions.

Please check the Library and Archive Centre closure FAQ for any other enquiries.