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Under 16

You can join the Library from any age, if you are under 16 you will require a parent/guardian/responsible adult to act as a guarantor.

The guarantor will

• ensure the cardholder abides by the rules of the library.
• be responsible for items borrowed and any charges incurred.
• be responsible for the cardholder internet usage, including materials found on or printed from the computers, and any costs of damages that may be incurred while connected.

We ask that you will

• bring your library card with you when you use the library.
• bring items back on time. You will have to pay a charge for items brought back late on an adult library card.
• be responsible for all items borrowed on your library card. There will be a charge for items that are lost or damaged.
• not allow your library card to be used by anyone else.

Your guarantor will need to be with you when you join the Library.

Information for borrowers aged 16 to 17

If you are between 16 and 17yrs old and would like to join we will accept a student card, letter from your school or college or other appropriate identification.

From October 2021 we are making changes to our Young Adult category and will be introducing a points system. 

Why we are doing this

We want to raise awareness that fines are charged for late items when you reach 18 and move to our Adult Category. If fines total over £3.99 then this can lead to not being able to borrow books or being able to use a library computer until the fine is paid. If you are in receipt of benefit when you reach 18 then please let staff know as you may be entitled to our concessionary category.

How it will work

For everyday a book is late points will be added to the account in the same way a fine would be added.

• 1 point will equal 1 pence
• Each day an item is overdue 25 points will be added to the account
• The maximum points per item will be 615
• When the total number of points reaches 400 points the account will be blocked and the library card can't be used
• When an overdue item is returned or renewed the points will be removed from the account. If you renew your books online please let staff know so your points can be removed.
• If an item becomes lost there will still be lost charges to pay.

 How to avoid incurring points

• Make sure items are returned or renewed by the return date. We recommend renewing a few days before the item is due to allow time to return it if cannot be renewed.
• You can renew an item up to 3 times unless it has been requested by another user. Please see our renewal guide for more information.
• If you have any problems returning or renewing an item please let us know as soon as possible by contacting any Birmingham Library.