Borrow, renew and reserve

Borrowing and returning

A standard library card allows 24 items to be borrowed for a maximum of 3 weeks unless renewed for longer. There are some borrower categories that are entitled to a greater number of loans, contact a library to find out more.

Any item borrowed from a Leicestershire or Rutland Library can be returned to any Leicestershire or Rutland Library. Items can be returned using the returns letterbox while libraries are closed.

If an item is returned late there may be an overdue charge to pay, find out more about library fees and charges.

Renew an item

If you would like to keep your library books for longer than 3 weeks you can renew them online using our online library catalogue.

The online renewal service will show you the date your items are due for return.

Borrowed library items can be renewed up to 5 times as long as they have not been reserved by someone else.

Talking books may incur additional loan charges, see our fees and charges for more information.

It is not possible to renew an item that has been requested by another library member, instead we ask that you return the item to any Leicestershire library by the item due date. If you have any questions about an item you have on loan please contact a library or email libraries@leics.gov.uk

Reserve an item

You can log in to the online library catalogue to search and reserve library books and talking books that are available at libraries across Leicestershire and Rutland.

Once you have found the item you are looking for you can reserve it for collection at your local library by placing a hold. If it is currently out on loan, you can reserve it for collection after it has been returned unless there is a waiting list. You will be notified when an item that you have reserved is available for you to collect.

There may be a charge for this service, see our fees and charges for more information.

If you a cancel a hold using the online library catalogue, any fees for the hold will automatically be removed from your account the following day.

Sign into the Online Library Catalogue

To sign in to the online library catalogue you will need your:

  • Library PIN
  • Library card number or temporary borrower number

Sign in to renew and reserve

If you don’t know your library card number or PIN

If you don’t know your library card number or have lost your library card, contact a library. There may be a charge for a replacement library card, see our fees and charges for more information.

If you don’t know your PIN you can ask staff at any library to reset your PIN or contact us on 0116 305 2695 or email libraries@leics.gov.uk.

If you know your library card number and registered your email address when you joined the library, you can also reset it online by visiting the online library catalogue, selecting ‘log in’ and ‘forgot my PIN’.

Inter library loans

An inter library loan is an item that we do not have in stock in Leicestershire libraries, but we can borrow on your behalf from another library within the UK.  

This is a national service where libraries work together to supply items using the national public library catalogue and the British library catalogue to locate and source items on behalf of a customer.  

There is a charge of £6 to £12 for this service depending on where the item can be located from.  For more information email libraries@leics.gov.uk.

Subject requests

Subject requests allow library users to request up to 3 non-fiction books from any Leicestershire Library on a particular topic free of charge. This service is provided when a library user makes an information enquiry to a member of staff which cannot be answered using the resources available at their local library.