Donating, selling and buying books and other items
Donating items
Donating to libraries
We are grateful to receive talking books, music, DVDs and videos as well as books of all kinds. We will consider local history material on DVD or other formats, but can't accept for loan any non-rental DVDs as this a breach of copyright and industry contracts.
Please take donations to your local library and ask for the stock librarian.
As shelf space is limited donated items must meet the following library standards:
- they are in good condition – not fading, yellowing, marked inside, with weak spines or loose or missing pages
- they are reasonably current, especially non-fiction
- they have a good standard of content and publisher – authoritative, popular subjects
- we can dispose of them as we like – they may be offered to other libraries, sold, or otherwise disposed of.
We are always interested in receiving rare or interesting local studies material.
Donating to our record office
Do you own original historical documents that could be of interest to researchers at East Sussex Record Office?
Find out about donating, depositing and withdrawing records.
Donating to charities
Books that do not meet the high standards of library stock are often welcomed by charity shops, care homes or hospitals. These can be found on the East Sussex Community Information Service (ESCIS):
The charity Book Aid International sends books and journals to libraries, hospitals, refugee camps and schools in Africa. Items should be in a nearly new condition and under 10 years old.
Bequests and larger quantities of books
We accept small bequests, but do not have the resources to manage large bequests. Each case will be treated on its own merits, and should be discussed first with the stock librarian at your local library.
Bequests which are considered suitable are dealt with by our reader development manager.
For advice on dealing with wills and other issues, please see our page on coping with bereavement.
Selling secondhand books
Get advice about the secondhand book world – including buying and selling at bookshops and online auctions – on the British Library website.
Buying books, films and music from libraries
We regularly sell old and donated books and videos so we can make room for new items on our shelves. This is a good opportunity to buy older reference books or fiction. Look out for sales shelves in any library.
We don’t keep lists of what is available, so just drop in to your library to see the latest offers.
We can help you buy books for reading groups.
Recycling books, CDs and other items
Select 'books' or the relevant waste type from the drop-down list and enter your postcode to find your nearest recycling site.
