Photograph showing male students studying the library, between the shelves, with two oil portraits behind them.
Labelled on reverse 'Central Office of Information Photograph. Crown Copyright reserved (See Feature Set Into No.210 The Working Man's University: The First Polytechnic. The demand for evening education in Britain far exceeds facilities. After a full day's work a large proportion of the adult population hurry to evening institutes and polytechnics to learn, at a very low cost, the 'know-how' that modern industry and commerce insists of its workers. More than 11,000 people in the evenings, and 2,500 during the day attend courses for further education at the regent Street Polytechnic, where the twelve departments and three craft courses are designed almost exclusively for the vocational student who has reached the age of seventeen (there is no maximum age) and has passed Matriculation or an equivalent University entrance examination.'
Separately labelled 'D.47587 (13) The Polytechnic has a Central Library which is free to day scholars and available to evening students for one shilling per session. Books cover all the subjects in the prospectus, also modern literature including English and foreign fiction'.
Photograph of the empty library, from the issue desk, showing the turnstile and notice to members.
Annotated on reverse 'Old Library (Back of present restaurant from 1929)' and in a different hand 'Note by librarian Eric McColvin'
Image is the same as 1/B116/p
Mounted photograph of men and women students reading and browsing in the library and using the card catalogues.
Two copies. One mounted and labelled on front 'The Reference Library, The Polytechnic, London W1'.