AyeKen Library is a small, grassroots, independent library based in Glasgow that serves the whole of Scotland. It is not-for-profit and completely volunteer run.
You can browse the library catalogue by clicking on the button below.
We fully advocate that when it comes to accessing books, the local public library should be everybody’s first port of call. In addition to helping making books accessible, another key way in which local public libraries positively contributes to the quality of life of communities is through their function as social spaces. This is true regardless of the extent to which public library services are utilised, this is not just a philosophical point. Cuts to public library services are a direct attack on everybody’s quality of life. They constitute a genuine and significant social harm and extend well beyond the realm of ‘first-world problems’.
The aim of AyeKen Library is to be a secondary service that complements public library usage. It helps, to a very limited extent, fill gaps left by the Scottish public library system in a small, supportive, non-competitive way. The principal means through which it does this is that many of the titles available in the AyeKen library catalogue are not available in Scottish council library catalogues, or appear only as reference copies i.e. they cannot be taken out of the library. Another way is that it constitutes a single catalogue that can be borrowed from from anywhere in Scotland through the postal service.
Public libraries in some cases can, and often do, add titles to their catalogues at users’ request. There are several factors, many of which are outwith the libraries’ control, that place restrictions on their ability to carry out such requests. AyeKen Library can also add titles to its catalogue on request. If a request to have a particular title added to your local library system’s catalogue is unsuccessful, then in all likelihood AyeKen Library can accommodate it, provided that the title fits in the ethos of AyeKen library. If AyeKen Library agrees to have a title added to its catalogue, then the title can be made available to borrow fairly quickly. When a title acquisition request to Scottish council library is successful, it usually takes roughly a month for the title to be added to their catalogue.
The last thing that we want to do is to reduce anyone’s inclination to put pressure on local councils to reverse cuts to public library services, to address the problem of uneven development of public library services provision around Scotland, or to campaign for an integrated country-wide inter-library loan system, of the kind that they have in some Scandinavian countries and elsewhere, where materials from libraries across the whole country can be accessed through any local public library.
There are two annual subscription plans available. The Standard/Solidarity subscription is £18.50 per year. If you are on a low income, there is a £3.30 per year Access subscription.
You can purchase a Standard/Solidarity subscription or an Access subscription by clicking on the respective button below.
You can cancel your subscription any time.
Once you have purchased a subscription you will be added to the library as a patron. Patrons have to be added to the library site manually, so once you have purchased a subscription it can take up to 24-48 hours before you are added as a patron.
After you have been added as a patron (you will receive an email notification of this), you can obtain a login password by clicking on ‘Patron Login’ in the top right-hand of the library catalogue page, clicking on 'Need Password', and then entering your email address. You can change your password to something more memorable once you are logged into the site as a patron.
Once you are logged in as a library patron you can select items and borrow them from the library.
There are a couple of ways through which you can receive or return items borrowed from the library.
Borrowed items can be sent to you and returned through the post. The other option is that if you are in or close to Glasgow, then it may be possible for us to drop borrowed books off or collect books somewhere in, or around, the city that works best for you.
Receiving Borrowed Items by Post
To have the book/s that you have borrowed sent to you by post will cost £2.50 if postage is purchased through the library. The button through which you can pay for the postage to have the item/s sent to you can be found below.
The item/s will normally be posted out to you as a small parcel through Royal Mail’s Tracked 48 service.
The item/s will be posted to the address that you enter when you pay for the postage.
Returning Borrowed Items by Post
To return the borrowed book/s back by post will also cost £2.50 if you return the item/s via a return label purchased through the library. A return label purchased through the library will normally be for a small parcel sent through Royal Mail’s Tracked 48 service. The button through which you can purchase a return label can be found below.
After you have paid for a return label, then email admin@ayekenlibrary.com close to the time that you intend to return the book/s, and the return label will be emailed out to you.
Please note that once a return label is emailed out to you, it is valid for only seven days since Royal Mail postage labels are valid for only seven days after purchase.
Arranging Drop-Off or Collection In or Around Glasgow
If you would like to enquire about arranging to have us drop-off or collect borrowed books at a location convenient to you, then please email us at: admin@ayekenlibrary.com
When you first subscribe to the library, you will be able to borrow one book. After the first loan and successful return of the item, your borrowing privileges will be extended such that you can borrow up to three books at a time.
Indeed, If receiving and returning books borrowed through the post, the most cost effective way is to borrow and return three books at a time in a single package.
Borrowed items have to be returned within six weeks of initiating the loan. If there are not any holds on the item/s, then you can extend the loan period up to three times.
Automatic subscription renewals can be cancelled by emailing us at: admin@ayekenlibrary
When you cancel your subscription renewal you can still borrow from the library up until when your current subscription expires.
You can submit any requests to have a title added to the AyeKen Library catalogue by emailing us at: admin@ayekenlibrary.com
Whilst we may not be able to accommodate all requests, it is likely that the requested title will be added to the library if it fits in with the library’s ethos.
Council libraries quite often also acquire items for their catalogue at users' request.
If you have any books that you want to get rid of, and you think that they may fit into the ethos of the library, then you can contact us by email us at admin@ayekenlibray.com to discuss donating them.
We would also encourage you to donate any unwanted books that you have to GET Free Books Glasgow based in Glasgow city centre. Visitors to GET Free Books can take away three books per person per visit:
Visit GET Free Books Glasgow's Facebook PageWe also welcome donations in the form of financial contributions. Any such donations will go towards the running costs of the library, including subsidising postage of books, and expanding the library’s catalogue.
If you have any further questions about how to use the library, or if you have any other queries, you can contact us by emailing: admin@ayekenlibrary.com
Please do not hesitate to get in contact.