The Reading Room houses the Library's main reference collection (class R100 - R952). This consists of reference books covering most subjects, language dictionaries, encyclopaedias, national and subject bibliographies.
A supplementary collection (class Ref), containing current yearbooks, directories, university calendars, travel guides, etc., will be found in the wooden cases adjacent to the Enquiry Desk.
Books from the reference collections are not borrowable, nor may they be taken out of the room or reserved on the tables. Staff can, however, arrange for such books to be transferred temporarily to another reading room for use with material available only in that room.
The subject classification of the reference collection is closely related to the scheme used in the open Library. The main subject divisions are:
| R100 - R195 | Religion | R450 - R459 | Biography |
| R196 | Philosophy | R460 - R499 | Auxiliaries to History |
| R200 - R239 | Social Sciences | R501 - R687 | History |
| R240 - R248 | Education | R690 - R698 | Geography |
| R249 - R297 | Law | R700 - R761 | Literature |
| R300 - R338 | Medicine | R762 - R787 | Language (including Dictionaries) |
| R339 - R382 | Science | R850 - R895 | Bibliography |
| R400 - R418 | Fine Arts | R900 - R952 | General reference works |
| R419 - R446 | Technology |
Note that R850 - R952 are closed access items and require ordering through the Library catalogue, iDiscover.
| Reading Room Guide: | Guide to subjects and selected titles |
| Classification schemes |