Like most public libraries Masterton District Library imposes overdue charges for items that are not returned by their due date. These fines are designed to encourage borrowers to return their books, DVDs etc. on time. While the money we receive from overdue fees is incorporated into the library budget, we certainly don’t impose fines as a money-making exercise. The staff time spent processing or following up overdue books and charges makes it a less effective revenue stream, and more importantly we don’t want anyone to stop using the library because of charges on their card.
Most of the books and magazines in the library are issued for three weeks and an overdue charge of 20 cents per item per day will accrue from closing time on the day they are due. This includes all the children’s and young adult books, the graphic novel collection, talking books, CDs, the non-fiction and fiction collections. Overdue DVDs and magazines from the Premium Magazine collection are charged at the rate of 40 cents per item, per day, and because of their high popularity, books from the Hot Picks collection are charged at the rate of $1 per day.
The overdue fines are in place to encourage the prompt return of library items, allowing everybody to have reasonable access to them. However we don’t want fines to deter or prevent anyone from borrowing books. If there are any problems on your card relating to lost books, overdue books, or old fines, give us a call or come in and see us. We may be able to come to an arrangement to get the books back, the fines dealt with, and get you using your card again.
Obviously the easiest way to avoid overdue charges is to return your items before the due date. There are however numerous occasions when people want to keep a book for longer than the original issue period. It may have taken longer to read than anticipated, there may have been a disruption at home, or perhaps it’s simply a particularly unpleasant day and they don’t want to venture outside. Sometimes, and this even happens to librarians, we just forget when a book is due back.
In these cases overdue charges can usually be avoided by renewing a book, something you can do by coming into the library, calling us, or, if you have a PIN on your card, through our website. During the recent return of Swine Flu we had many borrowers ringing up to ask for extensions on their loans as they or their children were too unwell to venture out. Providing no other borrower has reserved the item(s) you can renew them for the same period as the initial loan. Generally we will only allow a book to be renewed once but if there are special circumstances get in touch with us and we may be able to renew it again.
Here at Masterton Library we do not stamp books with a due date stamp but provide borrowers with an issue slip which lists the items that have been borrowed, and when they are due. Many borrowers put these slips on their fridge or use them as a bookmark so they know when they are due. Some have even taken to adding the due date to the calendar functions of their mobile phones so they will receive an alert when the items are due.
If you have an email address we can establish an automated reminder notice to be sent to you four days before your items are due. Soon we will also be able to send automated reminder text messages to your mobile phone. If you are unsure of when an item is due, ask us and we can let you know. We can also give you a new print out of all the items on issue to you and when they are due back.
We are very aware that fines can quickly mount up, especially if there are a large number of items on issue, which is often the case when all family members are using the one card. I hope that the above information will help you in managing the items you have on loan from the library, and convey that we are as keen as you are to avoid overdue fines. The charges are in place to ensure fairness to all library users by encouraging the prompt return of library items. We know that this is not always possible and will do what we can to keep your charges to a minimum, and keep you using your library.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
Fiction/Non-Fiction changes
Regular users of the Masterton Library may have noticed some changes to our layout over the past few weeks. Our Large Print collection has been re-arranged and we have also started to reduce the amount of shelving allocated for Non-Fiction books, and increase the shelving for Fiction. These changes are part of our ongoing efforts to improve the service we offer to our borrowers.
The new layout for the Large Print books has created an alcove incorporating one of the window bays on the Queen Street side of the building. We hope this will provide a bright and pleasant space for borrowers to peruse the books, and the opportunity to have a seat, take the weight of their feet, and check out their selections. Being slightly separated, this area also provides our users of Large Print books with a quiet space, away from the bustle and activity that can be taking place in the library.
The changes to the Fiction and Non-Fiction shelving are a reflection of how the library is currently being used by our borrowers. The reality of maintaining a library in the Internet age is that our Non-Fiction collection is not getting as much use as it once was as many people are finding their information online. It therefore makes sense for us to reduce the amount of shelf space dedicated to Non-Fiction material.
This certainly doesn’t mean that we are doing away with the Non-Fiction collection. There are still many instances where people find it preferable to get their information from books rather than the Internet, and we will still be maintaining a broad range of subjects. What it does mean is that we are fine tuning the collection, making sure that the books we do have are the books that people still want to borrow.
The bonus of reducing the amount of shelving allocated to Non-Fiction is that we can increase the amount available for Fiction, something we are really excited about. With more Fiction shelving we will be able to display more books, avoid over-crowded shelves, have more books by the authors we already hold, and buy books by different authors. Fiction books continue to be very popular and we are confident that the increased range we will be able to present to the public will encourage even more borrowing.
As we look to increase the size of our Fiction collection, we would love to hear from our borrowers about the books they want in the library. We work hard to make sure we keep up to date with new books coming out. We have standing order lists with a couple of suppliers for authors we know there is a demand for, and we put a lot of effort into reading reviews and industry publications to keep up-to-date with reading trends and developments. But requests and suggestions from our borrowers are a great way for us to spread the net of the books we are aware of and purchase for the library.
Borrower requests can be made at the issue desk by filling in one of our request forms, or submitted online via our website. To suggest a title online you will need to have a PIN number activated on your card. If you have one it is simply a matter of logging on, clicking on ‘suggest a purchase’ and filling in the online form. If we do decide to get the book requested, a $1.00 charge will be added to your card, the same as for reserving a book.
While we may not always decide to purchase a suggested book, or may not be able to source it, we are very keen to hear what titles you would like to see in the library. We welcome requests for any type of library item, including DVDs and magazines, and of course if there are non-fiction titles you would like to see in the library we still want to hear about them. The layout changes we are making are in response to changing usage of the library. These along with your suggestions for the items we have available for borrowing will help keep the library a vibrant and well utilised part of our community.
The new layout for the Large Print books has created an alcove incorporating one of the window bays on the Queen Street side of the building. We hope this will provide a bright and pleasant space for borrowers to peruse the books, and the opportunity to have a seat, take the weight of their feet, and check out their selections. Being slightly separated, this area also provides our users of Large Print books with a quiet space, away from the bustle and activity that can be taking place in the library.
The changes to the Fiction and Non-Fiction shelving are a reflection of how the library is currently being used by our borrowers. The reality of maintaining a library in the Internet age is that our Non-Fiction collection is not getting as much use as it once was as many people are finding their information online. It therefore makes sense for us to reduce the amount of shelf space dedicated to Non-Fiction material.
This certainly doesn’t mean that we are doing away with the Non-Fiction collection. There are still many instances where people find it preferable to get their information from books rather than the Internet, and we will still be maintaining a broad range of subjects. What it does mean is that we are fine tuning the collection, making sure that the books we do have are the books that people still want to borrow.
The bonus of reducing the amount of shelving allocated to Non-Fiction is that we can increase the amount available for Fiction, something we are really excited about. With more Fiction shelving we will be able to display more books, avoid over-crowded shelves, have more books by the authors we already hold, and buy books by different authors. Fiction books continue to be very popular and we are confident that the increased range we will be able to present to the public will encourage even more borrowing.
As we look to increase the size of our Fiction collection, we would love to hear from our borrowers about the books they want in the library. We work hard to make sure we keep up to date with new books coming out. We have standing order lists with a couple of suppliers for authors we know there is a demand for, and we put a lot of effort into reading reviews and industry publications to keep up-to-date with reading trends and developments. But requests and suggestions from our borrowers are a great way for us to spread the net of the books we are aware of and purchase for the library.
Borrower requests can be made at the issue desk by filling in one of our request forms, or submitted online via our website. To suggest a title online you will need to have a PIN number activated on your card. If you have one it is simply a matter of logging on, clicking on ‘suggest a purchase’ and filling in the online form. If we do decide to get the book requested, a $1.00 charge will be added to your card, the same as for reserving a book.
While we may not always decide to purchase a suggested book, or may not be able to source it, we are very keen to hear what titles you would like to see in the library. We welcome requests for any type of library item, including DVDs and magazines, and of course if there are non-fiction titles you would like to see in the library we still want to hear about them. The layout changes we are making are in response to changing usage of the library. These along with your suggestions for the items we have available for borrowing will help keep the library a vibrant and well utilised part of our community.
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