Help
Notifications - Email notices and reminders
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My Account
Signing in to your account lets you see which books and other items you have on loan, renew your books, update your contact details and view your reservations.
To sign in, use your library card number without any spaces and the PIN set up when you joined.
If you have forgotten your PIN, please reset your PIN online. If you have any problems, or if you don't have an email address, bring a form of ID to a member of staff in any Oxfordshire library. For security reasons we are not able to provide PIN information by email or telephone.
Renewing your library books
To renew your books sign into your account on the website or via the Library app using your library card number and PIN, . Then go to My Loans. To renew all your items check the menu box and then click renew loans, or choose the items you want to renew. If an item is reserved by another borrower it is not possible to renew it.
Join the library
To register to join the library please click on Join the library and then complete the online form.
After applying online to join, please visit one of our libraries to complete the joining process and collect your card. You will need to provide some person ID, such as driver's licence, passport, bank card etc.
If you apply online in a library you can collect your library card from the counter the same day. You will need to provide ID. Details of libraries can be found on our Find a library page.
It is possible to be a guarantor for your child. Remember to use your library card number and PIN.
Notifications
You can receive email reminders of when your books are due back, notifications when items are overdue, and when reservations are available to collect. To do this you'll need to add an email address to your account in My Profile and then in Contact options select the email option for the notifications you want to receive.
We recommend adding our reminder email address libraryservice.notification@oxfordshire.gov.uk to your safe list/approved list to ensure that they are not rejected by your email service, as problems can occur when email providers change their security settings.
If you don't have an email account many of our libraries offer free digital help sessions at which they can help you create an email account.
Please note that email reminders are a courtesy service provided for customers’ convenience, but should not be solely relied upon. It is still the responsibility of the borrower to ensure that loans are kept up to date. It is possible to check loans and renew books online 24 hours a day via our website, or our library app. You can also contact any Oxfordshire library during their opening hours.
Reviewing and rating books
Why not share your thoughts on a book by writing a review? Click on Add your review and start writing! You can also copy text from a text editor into the review box.
Reviews will be moderated before being published. You can delete or amend reviews you have previously written from the My reviews section.
To rate a title from 1 to 10, sign into your account and then click on a blank star in an item record. Once you have rated a title you can change your rating, but it is not possible to delete it.
Reserving an item
To reserve an item you will need to sign in to your account, find the item you wish to reserve, and then click on the Reserve button. Use the drop-down list to choose which library you would like to collect it from. If you have provided an email address and you have set your preferences to receive email notifications we will email you when your reservation is ready to collect.
A reservation charge is payable if you borrow the item you have reserved.
It is sometimes possible for us to obtain items from other library authorities via an inter-library loan. Charges for inter-library loans can be found on our charges page. To make an inter-library loan request you will need to sign-in to your account and then complete the inter-library loan form.
You can also complete a stock suggestion form – we will consider titles for our stock but cannot guarantee to purchase them. Unfortunately due to the number of stock suggestions we receive it is not possible to let you know the result of this decision. Please check periodically to see if your suggestion has been added to stock.
eBooks & eAudiobooks
These show within the catalogue. Search for these as for any other title. Although the search results may indicate a title is available, the correct loan status shows in the full record of the title entry; where they can be downloaded to a device or read in a browser. More information can be found on our website.
If you borrow eMaterial via the catalogue it will be returned automatically after 21 days. Only items borrowed through the library catalogue show in my loans. If you return a title early, it will still show on your loans until the 21 days has elapsed. It is not possible to reserve or renew within the library catalogue.
Searching the catalogue
Quick Search
The quick search is a quick and easy way of finding the information you want from the catalogue. You can use it as a keyword search to find an author or title, even if you can only remember part of the details. As you start to type you will see a list of suggested titles you might be looking for. Titles with special characters such as ! or & may not be found using the Quick Search – instead try the Advanced search.
You can use any combination of words from author, title, series or subject in any order. You can also use the keyword search if you can only partly remember details of an item. For example, to find a book on Russia written by Dervla Murphy, enter RUSSIA MURPHY.
You can enter up to four keywords, separating each keyword with a space.
The keyword search is particularly useful if you are looking for a particular subject, for example GREENHOUSE GAS, STONEHENGE, or CAKE DECORATING.
Try to make your choice of words as specific as possible; for example, look for STEAM TRAINS not RAILWAYS, or, if looking for a book on roses, use the word ROSE, rather than GARDENING. This will return a smaller list which will meet your requirements more precisely.
However, if you only type in one word (especially if it is a common one) you may get a long and not very helpful list of matches. On the other hand, too many keywords may narrow your search too far; don't be afraid to experiment!
Advanced Search
The advanced search allows you to complete a search against a number of specific categories - for example, by author, format, title, a particular library, or publication year.
To search more than one field in a category such as hardback and paperback for example, simply hold down the Ctrl key and select the options you require with your mouse.
If you would like to see more results then use fewer search fields or use the quick search.