Every School Library’s Quiet Challenge? Books That Wander
As a new academic year begins, it’s a good time to take a fresh look at your library collection.
A new term brings new pupils, new books being added to your best-in-class Infiniti LMS, and plenty of activity in the school library. Books are borrowed, returned, moved and, sometimes, misplaced. Over time, that can make it harder to know exactly what you have, where it is and whether your library records still reflect what is actually on your shelves.
Your library catalogue tells you what your collection should contain.*
But how closely does it match what is actually there?
For busy library teams, keeping on top of that can be a challenge.
*TOP TIP: Make library cataloguing and stocktaking a breeze (and save significant time!) with our easy-to-use loan equipment. 👍
A school library collection is constantly changing
Every day, items move through your library.
A book may be returned to the wrong shelf. A pupil may leave it on a table. Another may take it to a classroom. Something can be recorded as available, but is actually nowhere to be found.
Individually, these may seem like small problems, but they can quickly add up.
The result can be:
- Time spent searching for missing or misplaced books
- Stock records that no longer accurately reflect the collection
- Items that are difficult for pupils to find
- More work when it comes to carrying out a stocktake
Stocktaking shouldn’t have to mean checking every shelf
A regular stocktake helps libraries identify missing items and keep their records accurate, but manually working through even a modest collection can be a significant task for library staff.
Our market-leading eRLS UHF RFID stock control solutions provide a faster way to check your collection and identify items that are missing or out of place.
Using UHF RFID technology, library staff can scan multiple items quickly, helping to build a clearer picture of what is actually in the library.
That means less time spent working through shelves manually and more time spent acting on the information the stocktake provides.
From finding missing books to understanding your collection
Better stock control isn’t just about completing an annual stocktake.
Having greater visibility of your collection can help library staff identify patterns, keep records up to date and make better-informed decisions about their stock.
It can also help protect the collection, with eRLS combining UHF RFID stock control and security within one system. Click here for more information about RFID Security options for further and higher education.
You can also integrate eRLS with compatible self-service library solutions for an all-in-one system.
What could better stock visibility mean for your school library?
It could mean spending less time searching for books that aren’t where they should be.
It could mean greater confidence in your stock records.
It could mean knowing more about what is actually available to your users.
And, most importantly, it could mean giving your library team more time to focus on the things that can’t be automated — supporting pupils, promoting reading and developing the collection.
Start the new term with greater visibility of your collection!
If you’re looking for a faster, more effective way to manage and protect your library collection, discover how eRLS UHF RFID Stock Control can help.
As always, our friendly team of school library experts are on hand to answer any questions you might have about eRLS RFID, Infiniti LMS, LibPaths, or any of our industry-leading library solutions.
If you’re looking to stock up, remember to ask us about our exclusive 30% discount code for Peters Books! We also have a wide range of library consumables in stock and ready to ship.