Library news

A banner including the logos for Black History Month 2026, Lib Fest, the Staff Race Equality Network, the South Yorkshire Black Tech Expo, and the cover of Toche Eze's book "This Kind of Trouble"

“Stories are our code” - Celebrating Black History Month 2026

October is Black History Month, and this year we have events running throughout the month as part of our Lib Fest programme. Find out what events are happening and book your place here.

A visitor takes a photo with their phone of a colourful sculpture of a showgirl.
‘Finale’ sculpture on display in the Rope Women exhibition. Artwork © Rebecca Truman. Image credit: Fran Horner, University of Sheffield.

Rope Women: Online Exhibition and Activity Trails launched by National Fairground and Circus Archive

As part of Rope Women, the Archive has launched three new ways to engage with the Skinning the Cat Story: an online exhibition, in-person activity trail, and digital learning resource for young people.
ebecca sits with a sketchpad at the back of an audience, facing a women giving a speech.
Rebecca Plume sketching from the symposium audience. Image credit: Fran Horner, University of Sheffield Library

Sketching to Reflect: The First Women in Circus Symposium from a Student Perspective

Rebecca Plume, student bursary recipient, takes us to the Women in Circus Symposium through her eyes as a postgraduate researcher and performer...

Personas

Putting Personas to Work in User Experience (UX)
Teach meet

Library teaching online: Building a community of practice in a socially distanced world

It’s some understatement to say that this was not the year any of us were expecting. Almost overnight, Universities made the transition to online teaching and learning on an unprecedented scale.
Libraries: Essential Services in a Pandemic

Libraries: Essential Services in a Pandemic
Clowns 1

Who is that clown? Researching Victorian circus photographs

In October 2017 the National Fairground and Circus Archive was fortunate in being able to acquire an important collection of photographs and documents relating to Sanger’s Circus.
NFCA

The Conservation of the Orton and Spooner Company’s Fairground Ride Designs