Joining the Library

For details of who is entitled see here.

Indentification criteria for NHS staff groups

ID cards are NOT accepted.

NHS staff
  • Current NHS payslip (from last three months)
Dental staff in practices providing an NHS service
  • Headed practice notepaper giving name of applicant
Hospice and other healthcare staff working with the NHS providing services to NHS patients which are free at the point of delivery
  • Headed organisational notepaper giving name of applicant
Specialist nurses working with the NHS such as Marie Curie and Macmillan nurses
  • Headed organisational notepaper giving name of applicant
Refugee doctors
  • Letter of introduction from the Refugee Health Workers North East programme, giving name of applicant
Social services staff with a health care remit employed by local authorities, and statutory bodies working in support of, or in conjunction with the NHS
  • Social Services staff apply to NHS libraries or their NHS Athens administrator, who will email a standard letter of verification. This letter/email to be shown for at time of joining
Staff in recognised health and social care charities providing services to NHS patients which are free at the point of delivery
  • Staff apply to NHS libraries or their NHS Athens administrator, who will email a standard letter of verification. This letter/email to be shown at time of joining
Ministry of Defence clinicians and nurses
  • Current MOD payslip and Trust ID card. Both to be presented at time of joining
Her Majesty’s Prisons clinicians and nurses
  • Current payslip (from last three months)
NHS contractors, partners etc. e.g treatment centres, private hospitals, secure units, mental disability care
  • In consultation with the PIMD and NHS partners
All categories of NHS Staff are entitled to 'Walk in' access to Electronic Resources

You have to come to the library in person to register as we will need to take your photograph for your ‘smartcard’. Your smartcard is your library card, access control card and photocopy card in one.

For more information about Smartcards click here

To save time, you can download an application for membership form from here, or pick up a leaflet from your local NHS library.