In December, Merton Council will officially become the 15th member of the London Libraries Consortium (LLC), offering more benefits for customers in the borough.

The LLC offers library users access to six million items across all of the member authorities through the shared library catalogue, a brand new website and online catalogue.

The new catalogue is one of the biggest in the country and includes some of the largest community language collections in London, offering those who speak other languages a far broader choice than before.

One membership card can be used to borrow items from and return them to any of the 15 boroughs in the consortium, and from January 2012, all customers can renew books and make basic enquiries via a dedicated 24 hours telephone line.

Between 2 and 9 December, there will be a slight disruption to service whilst the upgrade is completed. During this period the library catalogue will be unavailable and there will be restrictions to web services although customers will still be able to return, renew or borrow stock items to libraries. All libraries will remain open during this time and these are only minor disruptions whilst the service is improved.

Cabinet member for community and culture, Councillor Martin Whelton said: “Being part of the London Libraries Consortium means that our residents can get a better service and really make the most of what our libraries have to offer. We are proud of the library services we offer in the borough and hope even more people take advantage of them.’

For more information or to find your local library visit http://www.merton.gov.uk/libraries.

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Press Contact:
Leoni Munslow
Communications Officer
London Borough of Merton
020 8545 4654