Benefits of Membership

Here are some of the other things you can look forward to benefitting from as a member:

• A quiet and airy study space with spectacular views of the Cathedral;
• Fibre Wi-Fi throughout the building;
• Daily and weekend newspapers and a range of weekly and monthly journals and magazines;
• Access to a wide range of databases, including Ancestry and The British Newspaper Archive;
• Catered teas and lunches in our Courtenay Room café;
• Self-service drinks and snacks available daily;
• Access to a unique reference library, comprising over thirty thousand books and periodicals, and collections of maps, ephemera, prints and drawings, five days per week;
• Ability to borrow up to six books from our contemporary collection;
• Opportunity to book spaces for study and research with specialist support from the library team;
• An exciting programme of events and lectures for members and their guests;
• Special interest groups for members, including a book group, gardening and research groups;
• Monthly Saturday morning Bookworms Club for Junior Members and their adults;
• On-line subscription to the London Library and use of the digital microfilm reader;
• Specialist training and volunteering opportunities;
• The Blue Room: a stunning restored Georgian reading room on the first floor, which will also host events, lectures and workshops, as well as being available to hire;
• A new kitchenette on the first floor, for refreshments and catered events in the Blue Room;
• Two new reading and meeting spaces on the ground floor, also bookable for meetings and groups;
• A new glass garden room, overlooking the rear courtyard – a tranquil place to enjoy the outdoors /indoors;
• New accessible lavatories and a lift;
• New environmentally sustainable heating and lighting systems;
• New programme of events and activities, celebrating the new spaces and inviting new ways to experience the DEI and its collections.

Additionally, all new members are invited to a special Welcome Event for New Members, which takes place twice a year. This is your opportunity to meet staff and other members of our community and find out how to make the most of your membership. The next New Member event will be on Tuesday 21st April.