Neil Chapman

College Library Assistant Hartpury University and College Library LRC

Neil works in the library of a university and college in Gloucestershire specialising in the education of 4,500 students and researchers working with animals, agriculture, sport and veterinary nursing.

He was keen to identify practical ways to make the library collection more attractive and relevant to students and staff, and in particular to highlight the books that would tempt students to read more widely than their course texts. He did a great job of clearing up the clutter that accumulates in every workplace but can become a barrier to visitors exploring the library.

Neil applied the practical exercises in the Managing First Impressions course to identify specific spaces that could be used to send a welcoming, relaxed message. He observed how students used the space and experimented with different ways to create a tempting display and use merchandising techniques to encourage visitors to explore the display. Neil used the course to create a showcase area that can be used in future to highlight books that have an appeal beyond specific subjects and to spotlight titles that support wellbeing and advice for students.

Neil approached the course with focus, energy and creativity. He is a person with an open mind and a strong commitment to the library, the students and his staff colleagues. His work on the course has notably increased interest in specific parts of the collection and transformed the first impression of the library space

Neil says:

“This course is very thorough and has really forced me to consider how to make positive changes by taking the reader’s perspective. I have adopted so many useful suggestions and ideas… I have chosen to feature the advice collection as my showcase feature. Since I have changed the subjects in the landing strip area as a whole there has been an increase in footfall. Students are now comfortable enough in the space to just relax in it and sit listening to their headphones. So, the changes do seem to be having an effect. We’ve also seen an increase in staff borrowers, including the learning support team, our wellbeing team and the occasional tutor.

Visually it seems like a great improvement, especially it has cost us nothing - just approaching the task with a new mindset has made a difference…The signs are good that it will promote non-curriculum reading in an area which has a lot to offer the students. Our manager and myself and my colleague will take forward the points we have learnt here about merchandising to inform the improvements we want to make to sections throughout our library. Our stock is comprised largely of textbooks but now, based on what we've learnt, we are rearranging our stock, making it easier for students to find what they need, the shelving more attractive as well as easier for staff to shelve books and tidy.”