If you are not sure where to look for them, the Force Library is the place to visit because it has a mine of information relating to all aspects of Police work.

OffBeat paid a visit to the Library recently and spoke to Force Librarian Simon Chan about its services and latest development.

Located on the seventh floor of Tai Sang Commercial Building at 24-34 Hennessy Road, the Force Library has a collection of about 4,000 books and 3,000 copies of research papers.

Mr Chan said: "This place is different from public libraries. The Force Library mainly collects reference materials on police related topics such as policing, criminology, law and management. Besides, government publications, dictionaries, newspapers, journals and Force publications such as the annual Police Review and OffBeat are also available here."

Apart from printed materials, a variety of multi-media reference items such as VCDs, CD-ROMs and audio-visual materials produced by the Force and the Civil Service Training and Development Institute can also be found in the Library. Some of them can be borrowed while others are for use within the Library.

"For the convenience of our colleagues, the library catalogue has been uploaded on POINT with the help from the Information Technology Branch in late 2000," Mr Chan said.

"With the online library catalogue, colleagues can search for books and research papers available in the Force Library through POINT and check whether the items they need have already been borrowed."

Equipped with six computers connected to the POINT system, the Force Library is not only an important source of information and knowledge, but also an ideal place for studying, doing research and leisure reading, Mr Chan added.

Mr Chan appealed to colleagues to donate course books and other reference materials to the Force Library and put forward book suggestions to improve the library stocks. "To strive for continuous improvement, we always welcome colleagues' suggestions on library matters."

The Force Library is open from 9 am to 5 pm on weekdays, and from 9 am to 12 noon on Saturdays. It is closed on Sundays and public holidays. All Force members including civilian staff can borrow a maximum of four library items for up to four weeks.

To access the online library catalogue, please visit POINT and go to "Index/Force Library".