Keep European Resource Centre (Baykov Library) on main Birmingham University Campus

The Baykov library is an internationally renowned resource centre that has been built up over many decades, partly with practical and financial support from many different research agencies, including the International Labour Organisation, the Economic and Social Research Council and the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

In addition to Centre for Russian and East European Studies (CREES) staff, research fellows and students, the ERC is visited on a regular basis by researchers from around the world, who specifically come to CREES to gain access to the Baykov library resources.

The proposed transfer of the library's resources from the main Birmingham University campus to a site several miles away will be extremely inconvenient for staff, research fellows, postgraduate and undergraduate students at CREES, who are all based on the main campus, and will disrupt the personal contact between users and the dedicated Baykov library staff. The move will also greatly diminish the level of contact between CREES staff and students and visiting researchers.

We object to the manner in which this proposal has been made without any consultation with CREES staff, or indeed information being passed directly to those who will be negatively affected by the move.