British Library of Political and Economic Science

Heralded as the finest and largest social science library in the world this place always left me distinctly underwhelmed. The architecture seems to my untrained eye somewhat unoriginal and the much lauded spiral staircase in the centre is a real b*tch to walk up. The steps are placed at just such an interval forcing you to walk like you have a club foot or nautical peg-​leg.
Due to its open nature and hard surface the noise really carries and it leads to quite a noisy atmosphere. Personally this doesn’t bother me but to some people this is a capital sin.
My main criticism is that the place is always totally packed. For whole months at a time you can’t find a seat for love or money. Students take to sleeping there overnight or at least ‘saving’ their place with bags/​papers etc. Very annoying. Also during the day it’s full of annoying undergrad kids chatting away pretending to be working. I have no problem with not doing any work, just do it properly at the pub!
Not open to the general public.
For my money, the King’s library just down the road is a far more atmospheric and relaxing place to work. All ULU students have free access.

As a current student of the LSE, I surprisingly visit the library only twice a month. Regardless, I’ve to admit it’s big (it’s supposed to be the world’s largest social science library) — which on the plus side means a well-​stocked library and lots of free computers and space. Well, at least that’s what it is supposed to be like.
Recently, the school renovated and rearranged certain parts of the library to maximise study and reading space, but prior to that it was always packed — especially during exam preparation period (during and post-​Easter holidays).
London university students will be able to get access to the library by signing up at the counter or at self-​service machines, and will be able to borrow books too. There are also guest PCs available. Not so sure about non-​students though.

The Library of the London School of Economics has the biggest selection of social sciences books of all libraries in Britain apart from the British Library. The building was designed by Norman Foster and associates. Yet, somehow I’ve always found it a difficult place to do any work.
The selection is genuinely incredible, and when I wrote my dissertation I only had to use the British Library catalogue for PhD dissertations. It is open to all alumni, members of the University of London and if you’re doing research you can gain access too.
The reason it is an unpleasant place to be is the terrible design. Whilst it does have some immediate visual impact, and is all steel and glass it is hardly Foster’s best. LSE I fairly notoriously hard work and so consequently the Library is always busy which means it is often hard to get a seat. As such the decision to sacrifice the middle of each floor to an open spiral staircase is bizarre. Furthermore, the steps of the staircase seem to be awkward for most 18+ year olds. The staircase itself is unshielded and prompts vertigo. There are lifts though, in which, comically, the voice sounds like Cartman. The floors and desks are largely open plan, which I dislike as I work best when I can shut myself away.
The LSE library has an incredible selection and good opening hours. Unfortunately, it is a terrible place to work.

This is part of the London School of Economics. Always buzzing with students. There’s automatic membership of the library for current students and I think all ULU students have certain privileges. I’m not quite sure if unregistered people can go in but we do have a swipe card system.
The lower ground floor is entirely PCs, and there are computers scattered throughout the library. The rest of the library is full of social science books — very specialist and ideal for students. It is very rare that there is a social science book I can’t find there! I think the library is one of the biggest social science libraries, if not the biggest!

The British Library of Political and Economic Science is part of the London School of Economics. I am not sure if it is fully open to the public, but for postgraduate researchers with Sconul band A, most of its collection is available to borrow. They reserve some ‘course books’ in a little ghetto for their students, which is fair enough I suppose.
I use the BLPES regularly for my research. It has an excellent collection of historical texts on political economy, as well as the expected volumes on economic theory and applied economics. There is an archive in the basement. The reading room is surprisingly small, but there is normally a seat free. The archivists are knowledgable, friendly, and helpful, but not afraid to enforce the silence rule (a good thing).
The library also has a large collection off-​site, which can usually be ordered for same-​day delivery. Strangely, there are also a number of documents of historical significance housed on the top floor, in open access. I presume they have been tucked away because, as textbooks on economic theory, they are outdated. Really they should be in the archive as some of them are in delicate condition and are gathering dust up on the top floor. They are literally gathering dust. Often I have to blow the dust off like Indiana Jones. There are lots of different work areas. In busy times they have a system to prevent people ‘booking’ desks all day by leaving their stuff around. This is a good idea, but it needs to be enforced more rigorously. The archive staff would clear them desks in a flash.
Some minor criticisms from the point of view of the external user. Despite having a log-​in account for renewing books, external users cannot pre-​order stack service texts online like registered students, instead you have to fill in a slip at the issue desk. I do not see who this benefits. Also, the men’s toilets are always, always really smelly. Worse than some public toilets. Slightly off-​putting when filling your water bottle from the purpose-​built water taps (there are fountains outside the toilets but you cannot fill a bottle here).
Finally, the stairs are really scary. A spiral staircase spans five or six floors in an open plan central column. You are often tempted to lean over the edge to give yourself the willies. Perhaps they are getting the budding economists used to dealing with this temptation so they don’t all leap off the top of buildings during the inevitable global economic crisis. That’s my theory.