The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The London Library will take place at 6.00pm on Tuesday 15 November 2022, in-person and online.
The AGM 2023 agenda will address the proposed membership fees from 1 January 2023.
We are aware of the pressures on everyone’s income at the moment are, therefore, doing all we can to keep membership fees as low as possible.
As a charity that receives no regular public funding, we rely on membership fees and donations to fund the maintenance and development of the Library. The pressure of inflation on the Library’s costs is severe and, as a result, we will be proposing membership fee increases of around 5% at this year’s AGM. The increases would take effect from 1 January 2023.
We hope that all our members will understand the need to raise fees by this amount and still consider the Library to be good value.
Learn more about the Library’s finances from our Treasurer, Philip Broadley, in the latest issue of the Library magazine.
Ways to Save
Members can benefit from a discount paying by annual Direct Debit. The proposed discount for full membership would be £40 from 1 January 2023. By switching to this payment method at renewal, members would pay less than their 2022 rate.
Other membership types such as Associate and Remote Access are available for those needing minimal or no access to the Library building. Meanwhile for those with very limited income, our Supported Membership offers discounts of up to 60%.
For writers, Library membership may be tax deductible, depending on your personal circumstances.
Thank you for your continued support.
We hope you will join be able to join us at the AGM. The London Library's AGM is your opportunity to hear the Chairman, Treasurer and Director review the Library’s progress over last financial year, participate in decision-making processes, and engage with the wider Library community.
Dubbed 'Pakistan's brightest voice' by the Guardian, bestselling prize-winning author, Mohammed Hanif, discusses his brand new novel, Red Birds, a powerful work about war, family and love.
Mohammed Hanif was born in Okara, Pakistan. His first novel, A Case of Exploding Mangoes, was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award and won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Novel. His second novel, Our Lady of Alice Bhatti, was shortlisted for the 2012 Wellcome Prize. He writes regularly for The New York Times, The New Yorker, BBC Urdu, and BBC Punjabi.
As the concerns and advice concerning the Coronavirus (COVID 19) increase, the Library is supporting and providing information for staff, monitoring the official advice and planning accordingly. The Library currently remains open as usual. However, there could be a time where we may need to close at short notice, for a short or longer period of time. In this situation updates will appear on our homepage on the website at londonlibrary.co.uk
Hand sanitiser pumps have been installed in all the staff areas and dispensers have been placed in the Issue Hall for use by both staff and members at this transactional area. Extra cleaning is also being undertaken and our cleaning supplier has an emergency specialist team to hand, to disinfect the Library in the event of the virus presenting onsite.
It is Library policy that staff follow current government advice with regards to self-isolation. To support staff and encourage transparency any member of staff affected will be paid for this time and it will not be taken as annual leave.
Members are asked to ensure that they are aware of the common symptoms, stay abreast of up to date information and strictly follow government advice.
Although there is no current plan to change the operation of the Library, postal loans are available to all members wishing not to attend in person. Please feel free to contact the Library if you would like more information on this.
Thank you for your continued help during this time.
Thank you for your interest in The London Library Subsidised Schools Membership Scheme.
The scheme is a unique opportunity which offers state schools fully subsidised school membership of the Library for the full year. With its unparalleled collection of over 1 million volumes spanning 200 subject areas, unlimited access to around 1,000 online journal and beautiful workspaces, membership of the Library is a valuable asset to any school.
Our schools membership package provides the following benefits:
- Membership benefits for up to three named individuals, two of which can be changed at any time
- Beautiful and inspiring places to work, study and think
- Ability to borrow and browse from an extensive collection of just under a million volumes, covering over 300 subjects in the arts and humanities
- Unlimited access to over 1,000 online resources, including Jstor andThe New Oxford Shakespeare
- Generous borrowing allowances of up to 25 volumes
- Expert assistance with reference and research enquiries. We can also provide students with basic study skills sessions to help them improve research skills
We currently have over sixty schools in membership, many of which use the Library on a regular basis and benefit from bespoke support with study and research needs, ranging from EPQ group study sessions organised by our knowledgeable Librarian staff, to help with the research needs of individual students. Here’s what one of our school’s members says about their membership:
"Membership of The London Library is a great asset for our Sixth Form students - especially those undertaking independent research for coursework or an EPQ. Having access to online resources such as JSTOR helps them find the latest research on their topics, enabling them to gain insights which are current and fresh."
Some thoughts from one of our subsidised school students:
"I really enjoyed my time in the London Library. Not only was it helpful to my research, but it was amazing to explore such a unique place.
There were books about absolutely everything. It was really easy to find many books about a single subject and I found these books extremely useful to my research."
and from another student;
"I will definitely be going as this is an ideal environment for revising considering my A-Levels are coming up."
Applications for the Subsidised Schools Membership Scheme are now open to any state schools with pupils above 16 and a school Librarian. Applicants should have a clear idea of how they wish to use the Library for the benefit of staff and pupils. Applications close on Monday 3 July 2023.
If you would like to apply, please email Charlotte Beskeen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to request an application form. For any questions regarding your application please contact Charlotte by phone on 020 7766 4700 or on the email address above.
We look forward to receiving your application and good luck!
The Subsidised Schools Membership Scheme has been made possible through the generous support The London Library has received from a number of anonymous donors. The scheme has not received any public funding.
Read more: The London Library Subsidised Schools Membership Programme
