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The SSEES Library provides print and electronic books, journals, archive collections and other resources to support the study of the whole of Central and Eastern Europe and Russia.
Contents
- Space availability
- Opening hours
- Address and contact details
- Location
- Subject coverage and guides
- Accessibility
- Services
- Your use of the Library
Opening hours
Address and contact details
- Address: 16 Taviton Street, London, WC1H 0BW.
- Telephone: 020 7679 8701.
- E-mail: ssees-library@ucl.ac.uk.
- Nearest Tube: Euston, Euston Square, Russell Square, King's Cross.
Location
The Library occupies the four lowest floors of the SSEES building in Taviton Street. The entrance to the Library and the Library Help Desk are located on the Ground Floor.
Subject coverage and guides
SSEES Library provides print and electronic books, journals, archive collections and other resources to support the study of the whole of Central and Eastern Europe and Russia, from the Baltic to the Balkans, and from Germany to the Russian Far East. Subject-level guidance on finding resources, including printed books, journals and electronic material, along with contact details for our subject specialists, can be found within our dedicated subject guides.
Related links
Accessibility
SSEES Library is accessible to readers with disabilities. There is a ramp at the entrance to the building and a lift within the Library. There are also two height-adjustable desks and chairs located in the Current Periodicals section on the Lower Ground Floor. UCL Library Services offers a range of other facilities for users with disabilities.
Services
Self-guided tours
Users of the Library can familiarise themselves with general library resources and collections and make the most of all our services and facilities, with our self-guided tour.
SSEES Library self-guided tour
Inter-library loans
UCL staff and students may use the Interlending & Document Supply service to request items which are not already held in any of the UCL libraries, and not easily available from any other nearby library to which UCL members have access.
Self-service
The Library has two self-service machines. The main self-service point on the Ground Floor allows you to borrow and return books. The self-service machine on the First Floor is just for borrowing.
In addition to your UCL card, you will need your four-digit PIN to borrow books at the machines.
Computing
SSEES Library has two computer clusters. The Student Cluster on the First Floor of the Library is open to all UCL students. There is a separate cluster for SSEES postgraduate students outside the Library on the First Floor of the School. The doors to the clusters are fitted with digilocks. 4-digit codes for the doors may be obtained at the Library Help Desk on presentation of a valid UCL student ID card.
You will need your UCL user ID and password to log on to Desktop@UCL for access to UCL email, the central filestore and centrally-provided software. USB devices can be used in the clusters. They must be plugged in to the computer before logging on to Desktop@UCL.
Each computer room is equipped with a machine for photocopying, printing and scanning. The Student Cluster also has 12 laptops which UCL students can borrow.
In addition to the SSEES clusters, all UCL students are entitled to use the ISD-managed computer workrooms across UCL. A list of locations and further information is available. There are also two Desktop@UCL computers on the Lower Ground Floor which any member of UCL may use.
Most of the Library’s study desks are equipped with power sockets for laptops and other devices. Please do not use the power points in the floor.
Photocopying, scanning and printing
Self-service photocopying, scanning and printing machines are provided in the Library; two are located on the Lower Ground Floor and one in each of the student computer clusters. If you need to check or top up your print credit, you can do so online or at the credit loader kiosk on the Lower Ground Floor (card payments only). Visitors need to create a login and PIN at the credit loader kiosk before logging on to the photocopiers.
If you are having trouble with your account, guidance is available on the IT Help & Support page.
Microfilm reader
The microfilm reader is located on the Lower Ground Floor of the Library near the Photocopying Room. The Library has a substantial collection of microform materials, including back issues of many Russian and East European newspapers. These can be requested via Explore. Always check the library catalogue first, as back issues of many newspapers and journals are now available electronically.
It is possible to scan from the microfilm reader. You will need a USB drive to save your scans.
Audio-visual collections
SSEES Library has an extensive collection of films and documentaries from and relating to Central and Eastern Europe and Russia. To find out what is available, please see the Bain Graffy Film Collection catalogue.
The audio-visual collection is a reference resource, so DVDs and videos are not available for loan. Registered UCL students and staff of UCL can view material from the collection in the Multimedia Room on the First Floor of the Library. Headphones may be borrowed from the Help Desk on deposit of a current UCL ID card.
Archives
SSEES Library holds an extensive archive of material such as memoirs, photographs and newspaper cuttings on topics relating to the areas studied by the School. The SSEES Library archives page is your starting point for details of our archive collections. You can also find information about our archives by searching Explore.
Access to the majority of SSEES archive collections is unrestricted and the archives are open to the public. An appointment must be made in advance of your first visit to consult the archives; please contact SSEES Library for further information on required documentation.
A number of collections are accessible only after a formal application and the acceptance of special conditions. Special terms apply to the reproduction of photographs and the photography of documents for publication.
Archive material is not available for loan.
Your use of the Library
You may work in whichever part of the Library you find most comfortable. You may take books and periodicals from one floor to another, but please leave them on one of the shelving trolleys when you have finished with them.
Please help us make the Library a comfortable place for everyone to study. Mobile phones must be switched off or set to silent in all the public areas apart from the Ground Floor and the staircases from First to Second. You will be asked to move to the Ground Floor if you are disturbing other people by talking.
You are welcome to bring your own hot or cold drinks in closed containers into the Library, but for the comfort of all users food is not permitted. A drinking fountain is provided on the Lower Ground Floor, where you may refill water bottles.
Be very careful of your own property while you are in the Library and do not leave valuables unattended. If you do leave something behind, there is a Lost and Found box at the Help Desk.
