If you need a book or journal article that is not held in any format at one of the University of Derby libraries, the Inter Library Loans (ILLs) service may be able to obtain a copy from another library.
Request an Inter Library Loan
Before submitting your Inter Library Loan Request, please check Library Search to ensure we do not already hold the item in one of our libraries. We are unable to supply items that are already in stock.
Please note: during the Christmas closure period you may still place requests, but some requests will not be satisfied until after 02.01.25
The Inter Library Loans service is available to the following users:
Type of user | Maximum number of requests in one year | Cost per request |
---|---|---|
Undergraduates | Unlimited | No charge |
Taught postgraduates | Unlimited | No charge |
Research students | Unlimited | No charge |
Staff | Unlimited | No charge |
The following user categories are not eligible for inter library loans: External, Alumni, Honorary, SCONUL Access and Exchange (e.g. Erasmus) students. If you are in one of these categories you may be able to request an inter library loan at your local library or directly, by registering at the British Library
Inter library loan requests may be placed for items that are:
To comply with UK copyright law, we can only supply you with one chapter per book or one article per journal issue. If you require more than one item from the same publication, you should request a loan of the full item.
There are two ways to submit an Inter Library Loan request.
Library Search (New!)
It is now even easier to get hold of books and articles with the new Inter Library Loans functionality in Library Search. Please note that you will need to sign in to Library Search to view request options.
Once you have searched for an item, select ‘expand your search’ to see resources that we do not hold electronically, or at one of our libraries.
Where you see the option to 'Get it for me from other libraries' we may be able to supply this item via Inter Library Loan.
Click 'Get it for me from other libraries' to see more information about the item, and go to the 'Get it from other locations' section to choose an Inter Library Loan request option.
Inter Library Loan Request Form
If you are not able to find the resource you need in Library Search, please submit a request using our request form:
Notice for users with a British Library account
The Library will sometimes use the British Library to source an inter library loan for you. In these cases you may be asked to create an account with the British Library in order access and download digital copies of your requested content.
If you have used the service before and already have an existing account, the British Library recommend you re-set your password after they experienced a series of cyber attacks in November 2023. You can read more about the incident and service updates on the British Library's blog.
Further information
You should receive your item within 6 to 10 days, however some items may take 2 to 3 weeks to arrive, so we recommend that you make your request as far in advance as possible.
Journal articles and book chapters
These will usually be sent directly to your email address. You will receive a link to a PDF and will need to sign in using your university credentials to access the item. Digital requests may also be supplied by the British Library and you will need to register for a free On Demand account before you can access these items.
Occasionally, articles or book chapters received from other libraries will be supplied as photocopies and must be collected from the library. We will email you to let you know when your item is ready to collect.
Loans
You will receive an email when your item is ready for collection. Your books will be available to pick up from the Library counter at the collection site you selected on your request form.
The loan period is set by the lending library and items are subject to recall. To take full advantage of the loan period you should collect your items as soon as possible.
Library use only
Sometimes libraries specify that books may not be taken away from the library. These items can only be used within the Library during staffed hours, so please plan your visit to allow for this.
Returning your Inter Library Loan
Please return books to a member of staff at a Library loans counter on or before the due date to allow us plenty of time to send them back to the lending library.
You do not have to return photocopies of journal articles and books chapters.
Renewals
It may be possible to renew your inter library loan books if you need them for longer. Please email us at ills@derby.ac.uk a few working days before the due date so that we can contact the lending library and ask them if a renewal would be possible.
Fines
It is important that you take care of your inter library loan as if an item is not returned for any reason you will be liable for the cost of a replacement.
Journal articles and book chapters will generally be sent directly to your email address. The emails containing the links to your items will either arrive directly from the Library (ills@derby.ac.uk) or from the British Library (noreply@bldss.bl.uk).
How to access journal articles and book chapters sent directly by the Library
You can also download these items from your account in Library Search.
How to access journal articles and book chapters from the British Library
Before you can access your documents you will need to:
To access your items:
We recommend using Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox or Safari as your browser. You may use Google Chrome, but you will need to disable the Chrome PDF viewer before your documents can be opened on your computer.
The document is locked to your user account rather than a machine, so it can be viewed on any computer or mobile device. If you wish to view the document on multiple devices, please ensure you have installed Adobe Reader or Adobe Digital Editions on each device.
Printing
All download links will expire after 30 days so please print or save a copy of the document as soon as possible.
You will only be able to print your document once, so please ensure that your printer is working and (if you are printing from a University PC) that you have sufficient print credit first.
You will be able to access a saved document on your device for up to 3 years.
How to get helpFor assistance with registering for an On Demand account, please see our ILL SED Registration Guide.
If you are having problems accessing your document, check if your question is answered in the British Library On Demand FAQs.
If you need further help, please email library@derby.ac.uk or call us on +44 (0)1332 591215.
Copyright declaration
I hereby request you to supply me with a copy of the item detailed on this form which I require for the purposes of research or private study. I declare that:
Delivery
We will endeavour to process your request within five working days of its receipt. Please allow two to three weeks for the supply of the item, although most requests, especially those sent electronically, will arrive within days.
You can check the progress of your request by logging onto My Account in Library Search.
Staff
The Inter Library Loan (ILL) Service supports academic work undertaken by staff employed by the University of Derby. We are unable to process requests relating to work or study that is not connected with UoD.
Data protection
Our Data Protection Officer (DPO) is Helen Rishworth on (01332) 591954. Alternatively you can email gdpr@derby.ac.uk Further information on how we handle your information and details of our DPO can be found here on our website https://www.derby.ac.uk/its/datagov/privnotice/
The University of Derby holds ILL requests securely and will keep request details for the period of six years as required by the terms and conditions of the British Library and the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
If the item you would like is a thesis, please check to see if it is available via the British Library’s EThOS service. Many UK theses have been digitised and are available to download free of charge.
What is a thesis?
A doctoral thesis is a long piece of writing based on the ideas and research conducted as part of a doctorate degree, i.e. a PhD, EdD or ProfDoc.
Many theses are directly obtainable from EThOS, the British Library's service for the delivery of PhD theses published by UK universities.
If you require a thesis, you can obtain it directly in electronic format to your PC desktop.
EThOS Electronic Theses Online Service
Follow this pathway to use EThOS:
For further information and help please contact us at library@derby.ac.uk