Bridgend County Borough Council

ABOUT BRIDGEND LIBRARIES

Tel: (01656) 754810
Fax: (01656) 645719
e-mail: blis@bridgend.gov.uk

Bridgend Library and Information Service provides public book lending and information services to the 128,000 residents of Bridgend County Borough, South Wales.

The service is provided through:
13 branch libraries, a mobile library, Cyberlink and a central Reference and Information Centre.

We offer you:

• over half a million books, CDs, DVD's, videos and audio books for loan.
• free internet access, e-mail, scanning, CD burning and word-processing at 14 of our libraries via the People's Network.
• it's easy to join - just fill in the online form and you can enjoy the benefits of membership straight away.
• complete stock listing available at our on-line catalogue.
• a wide range of information sources in printed and automated formats.
• a fast inter-library loan service that provides access to materials from anywhere in the world.
• a home delivery service to housebound readers.
• extensive local and family history research facilities.
• the innovative Cyberlink ICT vehicle. Check the timetable to see if it's visiting your community today!
• a wide range of materials and information for children and regular events for young people of all ages (babies to teens).
• Learning is for everyone! Here's what your library has to offer.

Bridgend Library & Information Service is a Learndirect Centre

Bridgend Library & Information Service is an ECDL test centre.

Do you want a book we haven't got?

Request any book from anywhere* FOR FREE

*Subject to availability.

Offer open only to borrowers who have a clear account with Bridgend Library & Information Service.

Requests for out of stock items available free to those who live, work or are being educated in Bridgend County Borough

library.wales.org

library.wales.org is a mine of information and an excellent free resource for everyone. Get the right answer first time and every time at your library online.

Cobwebs

The Cobwebs site at www.cobwebs.uk.net is your online guide to local clubs, societies and organisations within the Bridgend borough. All types of local groups can be found here, along with contact details and other useful information. It is an online searchable database. Cobwebs also offer support for non profit organisations in Bridgend to build their own quality community group websites.

Ask Cymru

Ask Cymru is Wales' electronic reference library. A team of trained reference librarians throughout Wales is ready and waiting to answer your factual questions and you'll have a response within 48 hours.

Bavalinc

BAVALINC (Bridgend and Vale Libraries in the Community) is a partnership of library services that operate within the Vale of Glamorgan and Bridgend County Borough Council areas. Established in February 2003, BAVALINC currently encompasses 30 individual service points including public, further education, independent college and postgraduate college libraries.

WHAT'S NEW!

British Citizenship Test

You can now study, practice and revise for the British Citizenship Test online at the following libraries: Bridgend, Porthcawl, Coed Parc and Y Llynfi.

Enjoy Reading? Aged 12-15?

Join our reading group in Bridgend, Maesteg, Porthcawl or Pyle library! Books for 2009/10 include 'Auslander' by Paul Dowswell, 'The Graveyard Book' by Neil Gaiman and 'The Vanishing of Katharina Linden' by Helen Grant. Contact your library for more details.

Llynfi Valley History Book

Brinley Richards' classic "History of the Llynfi Valley" has been republished by Bridgend Library & Information Service. Copies are available priced £22.50 (hardback) or £13.50 (paperback) from Maesteg Library, the Reference Library at Coed Parc, Bridgend or by mail order.

Join the Library Online

It's easy to join - just fill in the online form and you can enjoy the benefits of membership straight away. You'll be able to reserve books via our online catalogue and access free-of-charge a range of useful databases.

Get carried away by a Book!

Read about our new season of Reading Groups, where they're held, which books we'll be reading over the coming year and how you can get involved.

European Sources Online

European Sources Online (ESO) is an online database which provides access to information on the institutions and activities of the European Union, the countries, regions and other international organisations of Europe, and on the issues of importance to European citizens and stakeholders.

Important - to access European Sources Online you must be using a PC in one of Bridgend Library and Information Service's libraries / Life Centres / Cyberlinks.

Ideal for Research and Homework

Members of Bridgend Library and Information Service can now access free-of-charge these useful databases from home or work. All you need is a valid Bridgend Libraries card.

Search for articles from the first 200 years of the world's greatest newspaper using The Times Digital Archive 1785-1985.

Britannica Online is the classic encyclopaedia containing 123,000 up-to-the-minute articles.

It is also available in two special editions, Britannica Junior for ages 5-11 and Britannica Student for ages 12-18.

Newsbank contains thousands of full-text articles from more than 20 Welsh and over 350 U.K. daily and weekly newspapers. Includes the North Wales edition of the Daily Post, the Western Mail, The South Wales Evening Post, The Times from 1985 forward, Economist, Financial Times, The Guardian and The Scotsman.

OED Online is the searchable version of the greatest dictionary of the English language, the Oxford English Dictionary.