Collection management at heythrop College: The contribution of the academic staff through the medium of individual library interviews

Abstract

The library of Heythrop College, University of London, has a number of unusual features which influence the management of the collection. To date, however, it has operated without a formal collection management policy. As a contribution to the process of producing such a policy, the study described asked key questions about the role of the Library and the resources available to through interviews with the most influential stakeholders, the academic staff. On the basis of interviews with the twenty‐nine permanent staff and seven other key stakeholders, expectations about the role of the Library were considered and the fitness of the collection for the purposes required of it are assessed. Some specific issues raised by the interviews, affecting the Library's collection management, are considered. In particular the provision of multiple copies, electronic resources and the ‘explosion’ of publishing are discussed. The usefulness of the staff interview as a collection management tool is also examined.