Academic libraries should offer physical spaces and services in order to support education, research and learning. It is important for them to be actively involved in creating an inclusive environment, where all members of the academic community, as well as others, are able to participate and belong, an environment which meets the increasingly different needs of its users.
The inclusion of persons with disabilities (PWD) and persons with special educational needs is embedded to the social sustainability of a library. Policies can be established in order to make spaces more accessible, to create services that provide assistive technology and special collections that are supported by specially trained staff. Collaborations with relevant organizations and institutions can also be promoted.
This paper outlines the growth of inclusive practices of the Library and Information Centre of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, focusing on the Support Service for Persons With Disabilities (PWD) and particularly the services provided to persons with print disabilities. The Support Service was established in 2019 in order to respond to the needs of print-disabled users. It provides those persons with special spaces, appropriate equipment and accessible academic publications via Accessible Multi-modal Electronic Library- AMELib.
Support Service for Persons With Disabilities has established and strengthened its role as an integral part of the library services for users. Through collaboration with other academic libraries and as a member of Accessibility Team of Hellenic Academic Libraries Link (HEAL-Link), an economy of scale has been achieved in terms of providing accessible educational materials.