Online Enquiry Service

We have launched our new web based ‘Ask a Librarian’ enquiry service using Question Point for chat and email. Members of staff across our three libraries are supporting the service with chat currently being offered during peak times, Monday – Friday. So far the new service is working well and we have plans to extend its availability for the next academic year. 

New Library Management System

We have recently selected the Ex Libris suite of products (Aleph, Primo, Metalib, SFX, Verde etc) and the implementation process has already begun. The new system will go live in the new academic year. 

Staff News

Our new Collections Development Manager, Elizabeth Gregory, starts work at UEL in early April. Elizabeth will be responsible for the development and management of all our print and electronic collections.

Gurdish Sandhu has been elected to serve on the CILIP – LIRG (Library & Information Research Group) Committee.
 

ELTA (East London Theatre Archive) - JISC project

The ELTA online database includes 19th century play texts, newspaper cuttings, posters and playbills. It also provides images of posters from events staged by the political theatre company Cartoon Archetypical Slogan Theatre (CAST) at the Hackney Empire, documenting early gigs from the likes of Paul Merton, Julian Clary, Jo Brand and Steve Coogan.

On 29th January UEL and JISC hosted a very successful conference at the V&A, ‘The East End Through Performance’, and the ELTA web site was formally launched at UEL on 4th March. Work will continue to develop the web site and to add more material now that the initial project has been completed.

Andrew McDonald, Director of Library and Learning Services at UEL and Project Director at ELTA said: “Despite often being in the shadow of its West End counterpart, East End theatre has made many influential contributions to the world of performing arts which are documented through the archive’s content. We have been able to preserve a valuable slice of cultural history so it can live on for years to come.”

ELTA’s material focuses on key East London venues including the Hackney Empire, Half Moon Young People’s Theatre, Hoxton Hall, Theatre Royal Stratford East and Wilton's Music Hall with over 10,000 items coming from the V&A Theatre Collections. Other resources include images of the theatres taken by photographer Jamie Lumley, plus articles and essays from theatre historian John Earl.

Roland Muldoon co-founder of CAST who contributed to the archive said: “Political theatre goes out of date very quickly and people wanted to throw it out; I couldn’t do that so in the end I kept all the memorabilia and posters under my bed. Having it all brought back to life is wonderful.”

View the website at www.elta-project.org.
 

East London Lives project

Library and Learning Services (LLS) together with the London East Research Institute (LERI) and the Institute for Health and Human Development (IHHD) have secured over £100,000 to create a London 2012 digital archive entitled East London Lives. Funded by JISC, the bid was submitted last summer. The project started in October and is designed to create a research resource on London 2012 focusing on themes of community development and health and well-being.

The Project Manager for East London Lives is Dr Mary Smith This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Project website:  www.uel.ac.uk/ell2012/ .

Catherine Walsh

Associate Director (Services)
Library and Learning Services
University of East London
Docklands Campus 

Content of M25 e-bulletin Spring 2009 Edition