The collection covers all the principal areas of theology and philosophy with a particular emphasis on works in the Catholic tradition. It is used by both students and researchers, and includes complete runs of periodicals, some of which are unique in this country. We are solely funded by the Jesuits in Britain, and do not receive any other/public funds. Therefore, we are a members-only Library, and you might need to pay for accessing our collections, or using our reading room at the London Jesuit Centre.
Access to the Heythrop Library is open to researchers, academics and those with a serious interest in theology and philosophy.
When the reception is not staffed, the front door to the building might be locked, in which case please either ring or email us.
We have a wonderful collection of over 200,000 volumes. Find what you are looking for in the Library Catalogue. Watch screencast tutorial for how to search the library catalogue (3'12")
Scheduled closures:
May 2023
Mon 29 May
Please check before travelling, especially if you are coming from a distance.
During LJC teaching terms*:
2nd term | Tue 17 Jan – Thu 30 March 2023
3rd term| Tue 2 May – Sat 15 July 2023
Monday | 9.30 am – 5.30 pm
Tuesday | 9.30 am – 6.30 pm
Wednesday | 9.30 am – 6.30 pm
Thursday | 9.30 am – 6.30 pm
Friday | 9.30 am – 6.00 pm
Saturday | 10.00 am - 2.00 pm
Sunday | closed
*Please note: No admittance during the lunch break each day: 1.00 – 2.00pm, and 15 minutes before closing time.
Opening hours outside LJC teaching times*:
Monday | 9.30 am – 5.30 pm
Tuesday | 9.30 am – 6.30 pm
Wednesday | 9.30 am – 5.30 pm
Thursday | 9.30 am – 5.30 pm
Friday | 9.30 am – 4.30 pm
Saturday | closed
Sunday | closed
Explore our library’s full collections of books, periodicals, serials and more.
If you want to use the Heythrop Library’s Mount Street reading room and collections you will need either to become a member of the Heythrop Library, or be a member of Senate House Library. The FAQ below lists different membership options.
To access the library for research as a non-member, you can obtain a reference pass. Researchers with a valid Senate House Library card can consult Heythrop Library Mount Street items as reference only.
Heythrop Library is open to anyone with a serious interest in theology or philosophy and the related academic disciplines represented in the collection. We welcome enquiries about using the library’s collections and reading room at the London Jesuit Centre. The next two sections of this FAQ answers most membership questions, or download the most current Reader's Guide (link below).
There are three ways you can access the majority of the Heythrop Library's collections:
1 If you are a member of any university library in the UK, you can access the Heythrop Library through your university's inter-library loans (or documents) services. They will need to contact Senate House Library's ILL department (link see below).
2 You can join the University of London Senate House Library. Membership costs £210 per year and gives you access to University of London collections including the Heythrop Library (except the materials at the Heythrop Library reading room/Mount Street).
3 You can apply for membership of the Heythrop Library. Membership costs £60 per year and includes the facility to have books delivered to the London Jesuit Centre and to use the library reading room at the London Jesuit Centre as a place to work.
Paid-for membership (full)
If you do not qualify for free membership (see below), but have a serious interest in studying theology or philosophy, you can apply for paid-for membership. This costs £60 per year and includes the benefit of borrowing any of our borrowable books (on-site at the London Jesuit Centre, ca. 8,000 books), as well as over 140,000 modern volumes.
Reference-only membership fees
For just using the reading room at Mount Street, with its ca. 8,000 books, we also offer the following reference-only membership fees: £5 per day, £10 per week, or £30 per month. These reference-only memberships do not entitle the member to borrow any books or request books from the offsite store (ca. 140,000 volumes).
Free membership
Free membership is available to certain categories of readers including members of the Society of Jesus and other religious, any lay partners working in a Work of the Jesuits in Britain, former Heythrop College faculty staff, priests and seminarians, teachers of religious education, London Jesuit Centre students, current HE & FE students and sixth-form students, and those on a low income or unwaged. To make initial contact about becoming a member of the Heythrop Library, please get in touch.
The Heythrop Library holds around 213,000 volumes on theology, philosophy, biblical studies, church history, spirituality and allied subjects. The collection includes rare printed books and incunabula.
Since March 2023, we have asked our library users to supply testimonials, sharing how and why they benefit from the collection, library services, and the Mount Street reading room.
If you are a member and would like to contribute to the testimonials, please email us: heythroplibrary@jesuit.org.uk
Readers may currently take up to six books out on loan for up to four weeks. A working collection of around 8,000 books is kept at the Heythrop Library reading room at the London Jesuit Centre – these are mostly books relevant to courses taught at the London Jesuit Centre. Other books from the main collections are available on demand to be delivered to either the Senate House Library or the London Jesuit Centre. Delivery takes 24/48 hours.
You need to be a member of either Senate House Library or the Heythrop Library to request books from the main Heythrop Library collection (ca. 140,000 modern volumes)
The Heythrop Library subscribes to over 230 periodicals in theology and philosophy and related disciplines. We also offer on-site only access to the Religion package of JSTOR (over 100 periodicals).
The Heythrop Library is owned and managed by the Jesuits in Britain who are committed to maintaining it as an ongoing resource for the Church, teachers, researchers and academics. An Expert Panel, drawn from academic disciplines related to the collections, advises on acquisitions and the Heythrop Library Committee advises the Jesuit trustees on strategic planning and management of the collections.
Readers may currently take up to six books out on loan for up to four weeks.
How can I renew books?
1 Go to catalogue
2 Log in with your name and your Heythrop Library card number (starting with ‘019…’)
3 Click on x items currently checked out
4 You can then try to ‘renew all’, or select specific books and ‘renew selected’
If you have problems with renewing, please ask for your books to be renewed in person, or by contacting us.
The following cannot be borrowed:·
* Periodicals
* Reference books (with red spine labels on books in our reading room)
* Restricted or fragile items (you will be informed as soon as we have assessed them)
Some items in the Heythrop Library collections are too fragile to leave the library. We cannot guarantee that all books ordered from the offsite store will be in a condition fit for borrowing until they arrive. The librarians will alert readers if fragile books need to be consulted as reference-only materials in the Mount Street reading room. Such decisions may be made at short notice. We are sorry for any inconvenience this causes and thank you for your understanding.
When to request a book
If an available book’s location is marked as ‘Heythrop Mount Street’ it is available to be borrowed. If an available book’s location is marked as ‘‘STACK SERVICE’ [Offsite Store - Heythrop]’ this means that it needs to be requested from the offsite store/Crown.
Requesting books from Stack Service
Stack Service is the offsite store we use. When you find a book stored at ‘STACK SERVICE [Offsite Store – Heythrop CROWN]’ in the catalogue, please click on the request option.
Please note that when requesting books from the offsite storage facility every request defaults to being delivered to Senate House Library. However, Heythrop Library staff will check each request, and manually process them according to the requester’s home library. The following video illustrates this process: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1k7F2pvIDSaPs9VxeAXWkfp5YD9w-ipt5/view .
Requests get processed Monday - Friday, at around 11am, which normally means (a) book(s) will be available the next working day. Please always wait for the email confirming that the book(s) has/have arrived.
Researchers travelling a distance to use the Heythrop Library are welcome to use bed and breakfast accommodation at the London Jesuit Centre.
The Heythrop Library dates back to 1614 when the Jesuits founded their college in Leuven dedicated to the education of future Jesuit priests preparing for work in what was then the English mission.
Most recently, it was the library of Heythrop College, University of London. When the College closed in 2019, the Jesuits in Britain, who are its owners, remained committed to the upkeep and development of the collection both for the continued use of those training for ministry in the Church and of the wider academic community. It also supports the studies of those engaged in programmes here at the London Jesuit Centre.
Heythrop Library,
London Jesuit Centre
114 Mount Street
London W1K 3AH
United Kingdom
Can't find the entrance to the London Jesuit Centre?
See what3words /// The simplest way to talk about location.