Please provide your institutional context and discuss why you decided to develop Virtual Reading Room (VRR) or Virtual Teaching Space (VTS) services.
The National Library of Scotland has large collections of unique material that are not always readily accessible to researchers due to geographical, financial or accessibility restrictions. We initially discussed the possibility of introducing a VRR service and surveyed other libraries and archives to determine what type of visualisers they were using and how their service was organised. We then purchased a desktop visualiser and offered the fledgling service to selected enquirers, based on their research requirements. We then acquired a ceiling visualiser to use with our maps and large format collections. We ran an official pilot of the VRR service from April-October 2023 and collected feedback from participants. Based on the pilot, we decided to embed the VRR as part of the reading room service and have been continuing to offer sessions since then.
Please tell us a few things about your VRR or VTS service (e.g. when it was launched, what is mostly used for, the types of collections shown etc.)
The VRR service was launched informally in October 2021 and has been an embedded service since late 2023. Due to copyright restrictions, we only show collection material that is either out of copyright or was created more than 133 years previously. This restricts what we can show during VRR sessions to our older collections. The majority of requests are for access to our unique manuscript material, which is unavailable elsewhere. The requests to use VRR are often to check if the material contains relevant information for a reader’s research or to narrow down requests for photocopies of the items, as this can be expensive for larger orders.
Who is using the service(s) currently? Has the audience changed since the time of the launch?
Our service is mainly used by researchers – students, lecturers or independent researchers, who are mainly interested in our archives and manuscripts collections. The audience hasn’t changed since we launched the VRR service but we do get repeat users on a regular basis.
Have the types of use expanded or changed since the time of the launch (e.g. more supplementary)? If use has changed, why do you think this happened and what does this mean for the service?
The main change to the VRR service since we launched is that we now allow limited screenshots to be taken for personal use during the session, which we didn’t permit during the pilot phase. We have also started to use the visualisers for teaching and events. We have worked with lecturers from one of the local colleges to display older printed items from our rare book collections during seminars, which has the benefit of the students seeing live images of the material while preventing over-handling of the books. We have also used the visualisers during onsite and online events to show collection items to our audience.
How has the institution benefitted from offering a VRR or VTS service?
The National Library of Scotland has been able to reach additional audiences by using the visualisers for VRR, VTS and events. This aligns with our current strategy of ‘Reaching People’. Although it can be staff intensive, we see it as providing a useful option to expand our influence and make people more aware of what we can offer.
How does your VRR or VTS service relate to other services or policies in your institution (e.g. linked to digitisation or collection development strategy)?
Our VRR service is part of our access remit and plays a role in our accessibility policy. It is not linked to mass digitisation but can be used as a precursor to paid for imaging services.
What are the current challenges you face in terms of sustaining the service(s)? If there are challenges, are there any plans for overcoming these?
Current challenges include staff resourcing – we try to mitigate this by training staff in the different reading room teams to host VRR sessions. We have 12 staff trained across three reading rooms, who are referred to as the Visualiser Champions. We don’t offer set days for VRR, so we can be flexible in when we can offer sessions to readers. We occasionally have to reschedule sessions due to staff sickness but this has happened rarely.
Who is responsible for leading or delivering VRR and VTS sessions in your institution?
The Special Collections Reading Room and Maps Reading Room managers have oversight of the VRR/VTS service at the National Library of Scotland, with both reporting to the Head of Reader Services. The Visualiser Champions organise and run the sessions on a day-to-day basis.
What are the lessons learned from planning, developing, and offering VRR or VTS services in your institution? Are there any specific lessons with regards to the sustainability of the services?
Lessons learned include doing research on the best equipment for your needs, planning the service carefully so you know what you can offer and what you can’t, seeking feedback from participants during the pilot phase and adapting your offer as necessary. To sustain a service you need to have enough staff trained to run sessions confidently and have spaces that can be used for either VRR or VTS.
Author:
Hazel Stewart, Special Collections Reading Room Manager, National Library of Scotland
Relevant links:
Consult collections in person (includes information on the VRR), The National Library of Scotland