Plan your Research Room visit

Before your visit

Before making an appointment in the Research Room, you need to identify the material you would like to view by using our online collections search. Please note, many items have been digitised and can be viewed online using this search function rather than in person. Take a look at our guide to searching our collections for further assistance.

Once you have identified any non-digitised material you would like to view, you are ready to book an appointment. You can order up to ten items per day.

Transcript

Charlotte Willsmore: "Hello. I’m Charlotte, a Research Support Librarian at the Imperial War Museums, and this video will show you how to book an appointment in the Research Room.

Before requesting an appointment, you will need to identify the material you would like to view by using our online collections search. We have further guidance videos on using our Collections Search and these are available above the IWM Collections search bar.

Once you know which items you would like to view in the Research Room, you need to make a note of the title, type of material, and the full catalogue number, including prefixes. The catalogue number can be found underneath the title when looking at the search results list or at the bottom of the object details section when you have opened the record. You may find it useful to open a new tab when booking your appointment so that you can directly copy and paste the catalogue number when requesting your material.

On my new tab I have gone to the main IWM website. On the menu bar, which will either be displayed across the top of your screen or can be accessible using the three bars in the top right corner you click on Research and Research Facilities. Scroll down until you see the book appointment button and click on that.

Now you are on our Booking Schedule page. This contains a list of all the available appointment dates with an indication of our remaining capacity on that day. We also have filter on the left-hand side where you can find appointments on the day and or month of your choice. If you are using our filter, make sure to press the filter button once you have made your selection. Next, select the earliest date you would like to book an appointment for by clicking on the date.

You are then presented with the booking form. This first page is where you can provide us with your details, such as your name and email address. Once you have finished inputting your details you can go to the second page.

The second page is where you can request any additional dates, provide us with your reason for booking, further information as to your research topic, and any accessibility requirements you may have. If you want to order new material for your additional dates, we ask that you create a separate booking. This section of the form is only required if you wish to book additional appointments with the same list of requested material on this booking form. Once you have finished, you can then go to the next page which is where you need to add any material you would like to view.

Click the ‘Add’ button. This is where we need the information from our other tab. When you have the record open the title is at the top of the page. I am now going to highlight this information right click, copy, go to the booking form tab, and paste it into the relevant field. You don’t have to copy and paste, if you would prefer to type the title in this field you can do so. The catalogue number is at the bottom of the object details. We require the full object number including the prefix. This is very important to get right, as it ensures we order the correct item for your appointment. In this instance, the object number is LBY 12838 and I am going to copy and paste this information into the booking form. For object category, you can then select which collection the item you are ordering is from. As this item is a book, it is from the library collection. You can then press submit which adds the item to your list of material and you can add a further nine items to the list by repeating the steps above. If you are happy with the information in your booking request press submit which will then send your request to us.

That is how you book an appointment in the Research Room. Once we have reviewed your booking request you will receive an email from us confirming your appointment. We hope this video has been helpful. Should you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]."

How to book an appointment

This video demonstrates how to book an appointment for documents, sound recordings, photographs, IWM's administrative archive records and our library material.

Bookings are valid for the whole day however, to help us make your visit a success please indicate whether you are hoping to come in the morning, the afternoon, or for the whole day where possible.

Each appointment request is for one person only. If you require a second person to accompany you, a separate booking must be made in their name.

Appointments for 3D objects and artwork should be requested separately by emailing [email protected].

Cancellations

If you need to cancel or re-arrange your appointment, please let us know as soon as possibly by emailing us at [email protected], quoting your booking reference number.

During your visit

Upon arrival you will be provided with a registration form to sign. No readers' tickets or other forms of identification are required.
We do not allow pens, food, or drinks in the Research Room.

Facilities

There are lockers outside of the Research Room where you can leave any coats, bags, or laptop cases. You will need a £1 coin to operate them.
Please bring your own supply of paper, pencils, and pencil sharpeners.
Laptops are allowed.
We have a supply of weights (glass and snakes), paper markers, and cushions to assist in safe handling of the collections. The librarian will show you where these are. They must be returned to the librarian at the end of the session.
You are welcome to access any of the books from the Research Room shelves, please take them to your desk. When you have finished with them, please return them to the librarian, letting them know if you wish to reserve them for the next day.
There is free public WiFi access available to our visitors in the Research Room.

Transcript

Maria Castrillo: “Hello and welcome to the Imperial War Museum. My name is Maria Castrillo and I’m Head of Collections Access and Research at IWM. If you're planning a visit to the Archive and Research Room soon, I want to run you through some simple and useful handling guidelines to ensure our collections remain in good condition for the use of researchers now and in the future.

IWM Archive and Research Room is located on the second floor of our flagship building in Lambeth Road, London. When you arrive, a member of staff will welcome you and ask you to put any large personal belongings in the lockers outside the room, so you only need to bring in what is essential for your work. Before you start your research, make sure your hands are clean. Wash them with soap and water and ensure they are dry and clean before and when handling any items.

Avoid using alcohol gel, hand creams or perfume as fragrance and moisture can damage materials. Be mindful of long hair or wearing long jewellery, as it can catch or tear paper and other materials. Food and drink are not permitted while handling collections in the Archive and Research Room as they can damage items permanently. We also ask that you use a 2b pencil if you need to make notes or we can provide you one if you have forgotten to bring it. The reason for this is that if you accidentally mark an item with pencil, it is easier to remove than pen.

The use of laptops is also permitted in the Archive and Research Room. We recommend that you bring only what you need inside the Archive and Research Room and that you keep your desk as clutter free as possible. Loose documents normally come inside an acid-free grey folder. Very often folders are tied in with linen tape. Folders can rest flat on the text surface without any need for supports.

Open the folder and handle the items inside with care from right to left, as if you were reading a book. Avoid touching the text as far as possible as the moisture of your fingers can smudge the ink. When you're finished, place all the items in the same order as you found them, evenly and flat inside the folder to avoid creating any bumps that can damage the contents.

If you're issued with a box of files, please handle one file at a time and ensure you don't have multiple files open at the same time as the contents can get mixed up, especially if the folder contains small items.

Handling photographs requires extra care. Always pick up loose photographs from the edges. If the photographs have been placed in protective polyester pockets, you don't need to wear gloves and please don't distract them from the enclosures. If the photographs are not protected, you will need to wear neutral gloves which we can provide. The reason for this is that the surface of the print can be scratched or damaged by the natural moisture of your fingers. Some of our photographs are in bound volumes and albums which can be quite fragile. You will not need to use gloves to turn the pages, but it is important to use supports to ensure that the spine of the volume is protected. Some of archival and printed material comes in bound volumes. Although these can look robust, they need to be carefully handled. Carry large volumes and box closed under the arm with a spine down or in front of you with two hands. Volumes and books need to be supported to protect the spine when placed on the desk and staff will set this up for you. Once open, take care when turning the leaves and use a page turner where necessary. Sometimes you might need to use a white snake to hold the pages open but avoid placing it on text areas. Volumes can be opened at 120 degrees or 90 degrees if they are very tight.

If you need to remove a book from the open accent shelves in the Archive and Research Room, don't pull it off the shelf by the top of the spine or by gripping the spine. Simply reach to the back of the shelf and push the volume out by the full edge. Alternatively, you can carefully push the box on either side of the required volume and lift it off the shelf. Be cautious of the touch jacket, they often have tears present which are vulnerable. If you're handling a paperback book, please handle it with care and don't flick through it as if you were reading a novel. Some of our sound archive recordings are still in cassette tapes. Always handle the tapes from the plastic case and avoid touching the brown magnetic tape. Place carefully the cassette tape inside the player, close it and play it. Keep the tapes away from any magnetic fields such as mobile phones and similar electronic devices, as they can damage the recordings. If you are unsure about how to handle any materials, ask staff in the Archive and Research Room for advice as they are always happy to help.

If you notice issues with any items, please report it to our staff. We will contact our colleagues in the preservation and conservation department so they can assess the item and decide if it needs to be repaired. The most important thing is to pay attention to how you handle the collections. Some of our materials might not look old or fragile but they are often irreplaceable. We want to make sure that you and other researchers can continue to access them in the future, so please help us preserve them for future generations. We hope you have found this video useful and if you have any questions please contact us.”

Safe handling of collections in the Research Room

We have created this video to guide you in the safe handling and use of different items from our collections.

Most of our material is rare and fragile and needs to be handled with care to ensure it is preserved for future generations of researchers. We may ask researchers to wear gloves in certain instances for preservation reasons and staff can advise on these.

If you are unsure about how to handle any items in our collections, please ask staff in the Archive and Research Room for help.

Photography and Copying

Self-photography with a personal camera for personal non-commercial uses and other 'fair dealing' copying purposes is permitted and free. Please let the Research Room staff know that you would like to take images with your personal camera.
Self-photography may not be allowed in some cases if the item can be damaged or in cases where no copying in any form is permitted.
Out of consideration for all our readers, cameras/phones must be in silent mode with no shutter sounds and the flash switched off.
No tripods, stands, or scanners are permitted.
Copies of material from our collection can be requested on our Image and Film licensing page.

Reserving material for future visits

We can keep material on reserve for you and we would be grateful if at the end of your visit you could let us know whether you would like us to do so.

After your visit

Following your Research Room appointment, if you have any feedback, or suggestions on how to improve our service please let us know by emailing [email protected].