When I was doing an external course at Kings College, University of London in 2000, the only way to receive a confidential preview of the 1st yr exam was by fax from Kings to Cambridge Central library, and this was sent to my local library. They then emailed me to say I could collect it and read it. The real exam would be in London the following week.
This was a public service for me. I also had the chance to order COPAC items online, borrowed for free, in my local library.
This is an essential service for rural adult students.