Libraries as the Hub of the 21st Century Community

Greetings to all, and hope you are well. A few interesting updates to share:

Levelling up our communities: proposals for a new social covenant, a report by Danny Kruger MBE

In July the Prime Minister asked Danny Kruger MBE for proposals to sustain the community spirit we all saw during the lockdown. The report was published yesterday, 24 September 2020, with a generous response by the Prime Minister, including a commitment to engage the voluntary sector – which now includes many new volunteers and organisations that didn’t exist before Covid-19 – in a conversation about how to take forward this agenda.

Levelling up our communities: proposals for a new social covenant sets out a vision for a more local, more human, less bureaucratic, less centralised society in which people are supported and empowered to play an active role in their neighbourhoods. 

The report is warm about libraries and you may be interested in some of the comments about libraries and the reference to community-managed libraries:

“The fact that the library is an historic institution, a repository of the memories of a local place and traditionally a window on knowledge and a doorway to opportunity for people from ordinary backgrounds, fits it even more for its role at the heart of communities in the 21st century.  Many council-run library services are increasingly engaging with communities in designing their services. And where local authorities struggle to maintain local libraries, communities are stepping up to take over and run them. 20% of libraries are now community-managed, and more could be. Government should make a major commitment to support the local library as the hub of the 21st century community”

One of his summary recommendations include

“A new focus on the modern local library, often community-managed, delivering business start-up support and digital inclusion for local communities”

The report can be downloaded here: https://www.dannykruger.org.uk/communities-report

Online Learning opportunities

We still have spaces on the three online sessions we published recent. Follow the links below to book your place:-

4 November 2020: Fundraising and Income Generation

11 November 2020: Marketing and Communication

18 November 2020: Making an Impact

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

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Promoting some Shared Learning Events

All, I hope you are all well and safe.

We have three online learning events to share with colleagues. We have 12 places available on each session, kindly use the links provided to book a place. Please note that we will be organising further learning sessions in the coming months, including small networking opportunities with peers.

The courses below have been made possible by the Archibald Corbett Community library as part of their local Public Space Management course.

Fundraising and income Generation:

In this current climate we have to re-think how we run, develop and sustain our libraries. Consideration for new or different income sources is a must. You will hear from the Arts council, from your peers and you will learn about fundraising and income generation strategies they use: Please follow this link for more information including details of how to book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/fundraising-and-income-generation-tickets-121969795943

Marketing and Communication:

Led by Sam Brown, who has a long history of working with start-ups and local organisations helping them establish their purpose, corresponding programmes and communication strategies. You will take away strategies for marketing and communication and will have the opportunity to learn from and share your experiences with peers. Please follow the link below to book your place: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/marketing-and-communication-tickets-121985751667

Making an Impact:

:Social impact is the positive change that your organisation has created over a period of time. These changes may be social, financial , environmental or other. Community groups and CMLs need to put positive social impact at the heart of everything and be able to identify, capture and communicate the impact of their activities. To book a place please follow this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/making-an-impact-tickets-121989159861

Thank you.

We are Back

I hope everyone is safe and well, also hope you had a good summer break.

We have a few updates for colleagues and hope you find them interesting and useful.

Re-opening Case Study from Charmouth Community Library

charmouth-cml-reopening-case-studyDownload

Charmouth Community Library in Dorset opened on 20 July 2020. The attached case study share their experiences and some of the lessons learnt since they reopened.

We also have a short reopening update from Greenhill Community Library in Sheffield, see below:

Greenhill Community Library recently organised a Scarecrow Festival which ran through the first half of August. People were asked to make a character from a book and most of the 33 entries complied. Voting (via an on-line form) drew 250 responses with those characters with appeal to young children, notably “Where’s Wally” and “Peppa Pig” being favourites. Organiser Chris Brown commented “It was great to see so many young families out and about, clutching their scarecrow locator maps, and being excited by each new discovery. There seems to be quite an appetite for something different, outdoor, and socially distanced to do after the confines of lockdown and on-screen entertainment.” The library has also organised a “story walk” (with a child’s book distributed page-by-page on storyboards throughout the village) and a couple of storytelling sessions on the library’s large front lawn. You can find lots of pictures on their web site at https://greenhill-library.org/scarecrow

The National Rural Touring Forum October 2020 Conference

Please see the below for some info on a conference from the National Rural Touring Forum. This e-conference is dedicated to libraries and rural touring (13^th October) and may be of interest to CMLs in rural locations. Visit the NRTF WEBSITE for further information.

Shared Learning and Networking Events

We will be publicising a full list of networking and learning events for the remainder of the calender year after 25th of September 2020.

In the meantime, please note 3 learning events coming up soon, these are part of Archibald Corbett Community Library’s Public Space Management course now open to CMLs. The dates will be available on Eventbrite on Friday 18th.

4^th November              Fundraising and Income Generation (supported by Sean from the Arts Council)

11 November              Marketing and Communication          Sam Brown

18 November             Making an Impact                               Sam Brown

Take care all.