Reading time: 2 minutes
On 2 April 2025, around 30 staff from the five WA University Libraries (WAUL) came together for the inaugural WAUL Technical Services Community of Practice (CoP) event, held in the Lantern. Designed to support professional learning, peer connection, and discussion in areas like acquisitions, cataloguing, document delivery, and reading lists, the event marked the first cross-institutional gathering for this group in several years.
The event began with a warm welcome from University Librarian Kylie Percival, followed by an overview of the program and the Community of Practice Terms of Reference, presented by Julie Clift. These terms were developed to guide the group’s ongoing purpose and activities. Participants then took part in a lively networking session – so engaging, in fact, that many lost track of time and arrived late to morning tea! This enthusiasm was a clear reflection of the group’s eagerness to connect and collaborate.
The morning continued with four concurrent discussion groups exploring key topics: ProQuest’s new subscription access model for books, Trove’s updated resource sharing system, licence agreement workflows, and opportunities for professional development.
These breakout conversations allowed participants to share challenges, ideas, and local practices in a small group setting. Attendees shared insights from the discussion groups and feedback via Mentimeter, helping to capture key takeaways from the day. Although the event was hosted by Curtin, planning was a joint effort with colleagues from the five institutions.
One of the key goals of the day was to help participants reconnect, and by all accounts, that goal was more than achieved. Attendees described the event as engaging and a great success. One commented that they liked the relaxed format, so definitely a success from our perspective. Another commented that most people were happy that they found someone like them in the crowd! These positive responses confirm the value of the CoP. Future sessions for the CoP are being planned to continue the momentum and build stronger networks across the five institutions.
At the end of the event Julie took interested attendees on a tour of the TL Robertson Library – it was a very engaging tour, with lots of questions!
Written by Acquisitions Manager, Julie Clift
