Borrow books: UKHSA Knowledge and Library Services
Source: gov.uk (2025-07-27)

UKHSA, OHID and NHSE public health staff can reserve or request books they need through the Knowledge and Library Services (KLS).

Register for a library catalogue account

Use your library catalogue account to:

reserve or renew books on the online library catalogue (https://ukhsa.koha-ptfs.co.uk/) (UKHSA staff can use the Single Sign-On option)

access eBooks and audiobooks on BorrowBox (https://ukhsa.borrowbox.com/) (UKHSA staff only)

Members of UKHSA staff are automatically registered for a library catalogue account and can use Single Sign-On to log in. If you work for OHID or NHSE Public Health, contact us (https://forms.ukhsa.gov.uk/kls-enquiries) to set up an account.

How to reserve a book online

Reserve the book you require using the library catalogue if it is held in our site libraries.

To reserve a book:

Log in to the library catalogue (https://ukhsa.koha-ptfs.co.uk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-user.pl).

Find the book you want, then select ‘Place a reservation’.

Select which library (Colindale, Chilton or Porton) you wish to collect the book from.

If you require it to be posted to another address, choose ‘Show more options’ and enter your office or home address.

Select ‘Confirm reservation’ to complete the reservation.

Your reservation will appear in your account summary, under ‘Your account.’ You can cancel it there if you no longer need the book. When your reservation is ready to collect, or if it is being posted to you, a member of the KLS team will contact you.

You can add your home address to your library account to avoid entering it every time:

Go to Your account and select ‘Personal details’.

Add your home address in the ‘Alternate address’ section.

Select ‘Submit update request’.

Books not held by UKHSA libraries

Perform a ‘Discovery Search’ (via MyAthens (https://my.openathens.net/)) to check if a book is in our collection before requesting it, as not all eBooks are included in the library catalogue. If you only need a chapter, contact us with details as we can often obtain digital copies of single chapters more quickly than purchasing books. You can request that we purchase a book by following the instructions below. Mention in your request if you prefer an eBook, physical copy, or have no preference.

How to request using the library catalogue:

Log in to the library catalogue (https://ukhsa.koha-ptfs.co.uk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-user.pl) - UKHSA staff can use Single Sign-On.

Select ‘Your purchase suggestions’ and then click ‘New purchase suggestion’.

Complete the form with as many details as possible and click ‘Submit your suggestion’.

Other ways to request:
- in person to any member of KLS staff
- by submitting a general enquiry via our form (https://forms.ukhsa.gov.uk/kls-enquiries)
Renew your library books

The standard loan period is 4 weeks, and you can renew your loan up to 5 times. In some limited circumstances this may differ, for example if we have borrowed a book from another library service for you.

Renew your loans online

Log in to the library catalogue (https://ukhsa.koha-ptfs.co.uk/cgi-bin/koha/opac-user.pl) - UKHSA staff can use Single Sign-On

On the ‘Your summary’ tab, select the books you wish to renew and click ‘Renew selected’ (or ‘Renew all’ to renew all eligible items currently on loan to you)

Renew your loans using a self-service kiosk

Use the ‘Renew’ function on the self-service kiosk in any UKHSA library, entering your library catalogue account username and password.

If you cannot login or renew your loans

If you have any problems renewing your loans or have any questions, contact us by clicking the button below or see a member of library staff in the Chilton, Colindale or Porton libraries.

Get in touch (https://forms.ukhsa.gov.uk/kls-enquiries)

Feedback

This is a new service. Help us improve it by providing feedback (https://submit.forms.service.gov.uk/form/7932/give-feedback-on-knowledge-and-library-services).