About the Education Library Management System
EdIS, in collaboration with EA’s Education Library Service, are proud to launch ELMS, a new Education Library Management System, which will soon be available to all schools.
ELMS will be delivered in collaboration with our internationally-renowned project partner, Softlink who bring over 40 years of experience in providing the latest technologies to libraries.
With bespoke development for NI schools, Softlink’s ‘Oliver’ school library software for older pupils will be available to post primary schools, while our younger pupils in primary and nursery schools will benefit from ‘Orbit’.
Both innovative systems are well-established and highly-regarded products in this sector.
What will ELMS do?
ELMS will reinvigorate how pupils across NI engage with the school library by offering access to an expanded selection of literacy resources alongside digital books. Interactive and collaborative tools will endorse pupil reading skills and grow their foundations for lifelong learning. ELMS will be embedded at the heart of the curriculum to support teachers in their delivery of teaching and learning.
The system will support schools and EA Education Library Service staff by maximising resource management and providing comprehensive reporting facilities. It will streamline approaches to circulating library items, improve stock management processes and enable innovative literacy support accessed from any device, anywhere.
How to access ELMS?
Implementation of ELMS will be phased, with all primary schools, post primary schools, special schools and EOTAS accessing the system by the end of the 2025/26 academic year.
For the first time, ELMS will be available to statutory nursery schools where the system will be introduced from late 2026.
Schools must register their interest in ELMS and will then be contacted by our ELMS team regarding implementation.
Connect to ELMS:
EA’s Education Library Service will support schools to maximise the benefits of this new system while continuing to offer their existing services throughout the implementation process.
ELMS Launch
ELMS was launched at Killicomaine Junior High School Portadown, where the library is immersed at the heart of their school and the curriculum. The event was attended by special guest, UK Patron of Reading and Children’s Author Joffre White, who highlighted the system's transformational potential for young people.