Today marks the day the reopening of the university’s library and, since I’m in Guildford already, I thought I would check out what they’ve changed. Mask ready, camera ready, and off we go!
The university is, of course, very empty because students haven’t come back from summer break yet. As I walked through campus, I didn’t see many people wearing masks or face coverings as they walked outside but that is probably because they have only made it mandatory to wear them in enclosed spaces/buildings such as the library. For now, the library is only open from 8:00 to 20:00 every day (vacation opening hours), but it will return to its usual 24/7 opening hours on the 21st of September 2020 for the academic year.
Admittedly, I had some trouble scanning myself at the electronic gates but I got through eventually with the help of some of the staff. I haven’t had a problem like that before, so I hope it is a one-off incident. Right from the get-go, you can see that they have placed arrows on the ground to direct foot traffic and prevent the crossing of paths. Some of the narrower aisles have stickers that tell you to keep to the left or right.
Group study areas are closed off for now and only silent/individual study areas are available.
The number of seats at a desk, particularly the long ones, have been reduced and there are stickers marking the spots that should not be used in order to practise physical distancing. Some desks also have a black mat covering to promote sitting where they tell you to.
For now, books are not allowed to be accessed from the bookshelves although they are still there. The library does have a Click and Collect service for whatever you need to borrow though! Search for your item on the library’s SurreySearch system, and if they are marked as available, then fill in the “Click and Collect” request form (can also be found on this page of MySurrey). Wait a couple of days for the item to be processed and voila! You can collect them from the library yourself or you could possibly have them delivered by post.
The doors for the stairs pose a slight problem when it comes to contact due to the need to pull the handles to open the door on one side. The other side can be pushed, so you could do that with your shoulder, elbows, or whatever works. I hope that the handles will be regularly sanitised when more and more students start coming in.
I should also note that because the university has implemented a one-way system for all the buildings, you have to enter the library via the usual way which is through the first floor above SimplyFresh. However, you cannot exit the same way and you must follow the arrows and walk down to the other side of the library, walk down the stairs, and exit through the ‘Archive and Special Collections’ entrance.
All in all, the staff have put a lot of effort into promoting distancing. We won’t truly know how well this would work against the spread of the virus until more students start to use the library. I would still recommend not visiting the library during peak hours (or at all) due to the crowd but if it is unavoidable, the measures put in place should keep you safe. However, I would strongly advise anyone visiting the library to sanitise your workspace before and after you use it. Better be safe than sorry!
