Library Customer Care & Standards
Our Customer Care Statement, Our Values & Purposes
Customer Care Statement
In your Library you can expect that:
- We will offer you a friendly, courteous and professional service
- We will provide you with a comfortable, clean and safe learning environment
- We will provide high quality resources and services available 24/7 with expert support available at core times to help you
- We aim to meet your individual needs and offer a personalised service
- We will aim to provide you with relevant and accurate information on our services in a timely manner
- We will publicise our service standards and use them to ensure we are meeting our objectives and continuously improving
- We will respond to your feedback and use it to innovate and enhance our services, endeavouring to anticipate your needs
You can help by:
- Respecting other Library members and university staff
- Looking after the Library environment; using the bins and recycling containers to tidy your study space.
- Talking to us if you are finding it difficult to obtain resources in your subject area.
- Carrying your smartcard with you at all times and understanding why we ask to see your card
- Regularly checking your University email account and responding to Library communications.
- Telling us what we are doing well and where we could improve.
- Providing feedback to improve our services
The Library's values and operating principles
- The customer is at the heart of everything we do
- We are dedicated to providing a friendly, professional and efficient service
- We are flexible and innovative, ensuring that customer needs are met and exceeded
- Through training and personal development we ensure the continued excellence and expertise of our staff
- Our supportive and inclusive team environment encourages all staff to contribute and have a voice
- We actively engage with the wider community to share, collaborate and inspire
- We are enthusiastic to support the wider interests of the University and to enhance its reputation
- We promote accessibility, equality and diversity in all our services
Library standards
Performance against Library Standards
The University Library is committed to providing you with a high quality service and to continuous improvement. The following key activities are measured and reported as core performance standards.
During 2020/21 we used 6 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result |
| 1. This learning material/session/workshop/ interaction has contributed to my knowledge, skills and / or personal development. | 99% |
| 2. We will provide an initial response to feedback, enquiries and complaints within 3 working days. | 96% |
| 3. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, feedback and complaints. | 99% |
| 4. 95% of e-book orders will be activated for access within 5 days of ordering.* | 100% |
| 5. We will process at least 90% of inter-library loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% |
| 6. What percentage uptime did you record for your main discovery/library catalogue system? | 99% |
* Individual ebook titles
2019/20
During 2019/20 we used 9 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result | Comment |
| 1. We will achieve a ranking within the upper quartile of universities nationally for a satisfaction rating for question 19 (the library questions) in the National Student survey. | Achieved | |
| 2. We will be open for at least 99% of our advertised staffed service opening hours, during semester or term time. | 100% | Up until the national lockdown in March 2020. We reopened for Click and Collect on 14th July. |
| 3. We will provide an initial response to feedback, enquiries and complaints within 3 working days. | 97% | |
| 4. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, and complaints | 97% | |
| 5. We will ensure that at least 90% of returned books are available to customers within 24 hours. | 100% | |
| 6. For books ordered, we will ensure that at least 90% of orders are processed within 5 working days and books are available on shelves within 10 working days of receipt. | Ordered: 99.4% Shelved: 99.7% |
Up to national lockdown when we were only able to order electronic resources. |
| 7. We will process at least 90% of Inter Library Loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% | |
| 8. What percentage uptime did you record for your main discovery/library catalogue system? | 98% | |
| 9. At least 95% of the time there will be daily checks of learning environment defects and cleanliness. At least 95% of building defects will be reported to the University's Estate Support Service within one working day. | 100% | Except duing the national lockdown in March 2020 when there was no customer access to the Library buildings. |
2018/19
During 2018/19 we used 10 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result | How we did |
| 1. We will achieve at least a 90% satisfaction rating on Question 19 (the Library question) in the National Student Survey | 90% |  |
| 2. We will be open for at least 99% of our advertised staffed service opening hours, during semester or term time. | 100% | |
| 3. We will acknowledge 90% of all feedback, enquiries and complaints within 1 working day (where contact details are provided) and will provide an initial response within 3 working days. | 96% | |
| 4. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, feedback and complaints | 95% | |
| 5. We will ensure that at least 90% of returned books are available to customers within 24 hours. | 100% | |
| 6. For books ordered, we will ensure that at least 90% of orders are processed within 5 working days and books are available on shelves within 10 working days of receipt. | 99% | |
| 7. We will process at least 90% of inter-library loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% | |
| 8. We will achieve at least 90% rating on our timetabled teaching sessions and organised drop-in clinics on the following question: "Do you think what you've learned on the session today will be useful to you in the future" | 99% | |
| 9. What percentage uptime did you record for your main discovery/library catalogue system? | 98.2% | |
| 10. At least 95% of the time there will be daily checks of learning environment defects and cleanliness. At least 95% of building defects will be reported to the University's Estate Support Service within one working day. | 100% | |
2017/18
During 2017/18 we used 11 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result | How we did |
| 1. We will achieve at least a 90% satisfaction rating on Question 16 (the Library question) in the National Student Survey | 91% | |
| 2. We will be open for at least 99% of our advertised staffed service opening hours, during semester or term time. | 100% | |
| 3. We will acknowledge 90% of all feedback, enquiries and complaints within 1 working day (where contact details are provided) and will provide an initial response within 3 working days. | Acknowledgement 100%. Iinitial response 96.5% | |
| 4. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, feedback and complaints | 97% | |
| 5. We will ensure that at least 90% of returned books are available to customers within 24 hours. | 100% | |
| 6. For books ordered, we will ensure that at least 90% of orders are processed within 5 working days and books are available on shelves within 10 working days of receipt. | Orders: 100% Shelved: 100% |
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| 7. We will process at least 90% of inter-library loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% | |
| 8. We will achieve at least 90% rating on our timetabled teaching sessions and organised drop-in clinics on the following question: "Do you think what you've learned on the session today will be useful to you in the future" | 96.9% | |
| 9. Library Search will be available for 90% of the time. | 99.96% | |
| 10. We will respond to at least 95% of ebook loan requests within 1 working day. | 100% | |
| 11. At least 95% of the time there will be daily checks of learning environment defects and cleanliness. At least 95% of building defects will be reported to the University's Estate Support Service within one working day. | 100% | |
2016/17
During 2016/17 we used 11 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result | How we did |
| 1. We will achieve at least a 90% satisfaction rating on Question 16 (the Library question) in the National Student Survey | 93% | |
| 2. We will be open for at least 99% of our advertised staffed service opening hours, during semester or term time. | 100% | |
| 3. We will acknowledge 90% of all feedback, enquiries and complaints within 1 working day (where contact details are provided) and will provide an initial response within 3 working days. | Acknowledgement 100%. Feedback & complaints initial response 81%. Library Help initial response 97% |  |
| 4. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, feedback and complaints | 95% | |
| 5. We will ensure that at least 90% of returned books are available to customers within 24 hours. | 100% | |
| 6. For books ordered, we will ensure that at least 90% of orders are processed within 5 working days and books are available on shelves within 10 working days of receipt. | Orders: 100% Shelved: 100% |
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| 7. We will process at least 90% of inter-library loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% | |
| 8. We will achieve at least 90% rating on our timetabled teaching sessions and organised drop-in clinics on the following question: "Do you think what you've learned on the session today will be useful to you in the future" | 96% | |
| 9. Library Search will be available for 90% of the time. | 100% | |
| 10. We will respond to at least 95% of ebook loan requests within 1 working day. | 100% | |
| 11. At least 95% of the time there will be daily checks of learning environment defects and cleanliness. At least 95% of building defects will be reported to the University's Estate Support Service within one working day. | 100% | |
2015/16
During 2015/16 we used 11 standards to judge our performance.
| Service Standard | Result | How we did |
| 1. We will achieve at least a 90% satisfaction rating on Question 16 (the Library question) in the National Student Survey | 93% | |
| 2. We will be open for at least 99% of our advertised staffed service opening hours, during semester or term time. | 100% | |
| 3. We will acknowledge 90% of all feedback, enquiries and complaints within 1 working day (where contact details are provided) and will provide an initial response within 3 working days. | Acknowledgement 100%. Feedback & complaints initial response 75%. Library Help initial response 97% | |
| 4. We will achieve at least 90% satisfaction with responses to enquiries, feedback and complaints | 93% | |
| 5. We will ensure that at least 90% of returned books are available to customers within 24 hours. | 100% | |
| 6. For books ordered, we will ensure that at least 90% of orders are processed within 5 working days and books are available on shelves within 10 working days of receipt. | Orders: 67%* Shelved: 82% |
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| 7. We will process at least 90% of inter-library loan requests within 3 working days of receiving the request. | 100% | |
| 8. We will achieve at least 90% rating on our timetabled teaching sessions and organised drop-in clinics on the following question: "Do you think what you've learned on the session today will be useful to you in the future" | 97% | |
| 9. Library Search will be available for 90% of the time. | 88%* |  |
| 10. We will respond to at least 95% of ebook loan requests within 1 working day. | 99% | |
| 11. At least 95% of the time there will be daily checks of learning environment defects and cleanliness. At least 95% of building defects will be reported to the University's Estate Support Service within one working day. | 100% | |
Customer Service Excellence
Newcastle University Library is proud to hold the Customer Service Excellence Award.
Customer Service Excellence (CSE) is the UK national standard for customer service delivery. The standard provides an independently verified framework, enabling the Library to measure and continuously improve its services. The Library has held the standard since 1995 from its original incarnation as the Charter Mark to its recent Customer Service Excellence reaccreditation in 2019.
