The Inter-Library Loan (ILL) service enables you to request items that are not held at Plymouth University library. Your request will initially be sent to the British Library; if they cannot supply we can try other ILL lending libraries.

ILL requests are paid for by the university. Please make sure that any ILL requests you make are for books or articles essential to your studies, and please also check that the library does not already hold the item, and that it is not available freely online, before placing an ILL.

Making an ILL Request 

1. Check availability of the item on Primo. If the item is available from the library in print or electronic form, even if copies are out on loan, you should not place a request. If an item is missing, you should submit a request and mention this in the notes field of the request form.
2. If the item is not available in the library catalogue, or is missing, click on the ILL Requests link (top right corner below ‘sign in’ and ‘my account’).
3. Log in with your Plymouth university user name and password.
4. Select the appropriate request type, either Book, Book chapter or conference proceedings article, or journal article, and fill out the form as directed.*If you need the requested content in an alternative format due to disability you should mention this in the notes field.
5. After submitting the request you should immediately receive a confirmation email telling you that your request was successful. If you do not, please do not re-submit the request. If you receive an error message or think that your request has not been accepted, or have any other queries, please contact illply@plymouth.ac.uk

SEDs (Secure Electronic Delivery documents) should arrive within 4 days, and physical items within a week. Please see Inter Library Loan Articles for information on how to access seds.

Some items cannot be supplied by the British Library immediately. They may be on loan to another customer, or the British Library may not hold them in stock. If this is the case we will let you know and ask you if you want us to recall the item, or try to borrow the item from another lending library; these items can take longer to supply, may be subject to different loan periods, and will not always be able to be renewed.

ILL Charges

You are not currently charged for making an ILL request. However, other fees apply.

• There is a £5.10 renewal fee, which will be added to your library account automatically if the item becomes overdue.
• There is a £15 ‘failure to collect’ fee, which will be added to your library account if you fail to collect your physical book or journal request from the library.
• Lost inter library loan books from the British Library will be charged at a minimum of £152.70. Other suppliers may charge different fees. These may be able to be refunded, minus an administration fee, if the lost item is returned within six weeks.

Contact Details

ILL Team illply@plymouth.ac.uk

(01752) 588766