It is great to report that our library service has been awarded full compliance in the Customer Service Excellence Award. The assessor said he was ‘very impressed with the standards throughout the whole service from the impressive buildings, knowledgeable and courteous staff, through to the accessible information provided about the service.’

It was very good for all the library staff to hear about this accolade which was a tribute to all their hard work. Another of the feature of the service which impressed the assessor was the variety of work we do with other agencies to enhance the service. A good example of this was a project which has just been completed called The National Young Readers Programme. Coordinated by the National Literacy Trust and supported by the Universal Bank of Switzerland, we delivered this project which linked Children’s Centres and libraries. Over 1000 books were given to children who also took part in lots of literacy based activities. All children who weren’t already members joined the library and received their first library card.

I have chosen a children’s book to mention this time – Sky Hawk by a new author Gill Lewis. It’s a beautifully written wildlife adventure intertwining the lives of two children with that of an osprey. I just couldn’t put this book down and will be recommending this to as many children as possible taking part in our Summer Reading Challenge! I have nominated this title as one of the books promoted on the next World Book Night in April 2012. Send in your book recommendations for World Book Night.

Janice Hall
Libraries Development Manager (Communities)

Share on Facebook

As the football season closes for another year we know that summer has arrived. For the Children’s Team at City Library things are well under way to get the Summer Reading Challenge into full swing. All children in the city aged 5-12 are invited to take part. Their challenge is to read at least six books during the school summer holidays. There will be lots of extra activities and events taking place for children in libraries over the summer – view our events calendar or subscribe to the e-newsletter to keep up to date.

We recently had the pleasure of sharing the work we do to promote books to children with a colleague, Huda Al Yafai  from Qatar Museums. Huda has joined in with story times in libraries, schools, children’s centres and other venues and observed the training we have undertaken to support our activities. When dashing between libraries in a heavy shower she refused the offer of an umbrella explaining that the summer rain and rolling clouds were an absolute joy to her. She is hoping to return in November for the Northern Children’s Book Festival. Perhaps the winter showers won’t be quite as joyous though she would like to experience snow!

We were delighted with the news that Julia Donaldson has been announced as the new Children’s Laureate. Julia  is known primarily for her picture books, which include ‘The Gruffalo’, ‘Stick Man’, ‘Tiddler’, ‘Room on the Broom’ and ‘The Snail and the Whale’. But her first love was songwriting and she continues to write not only songs, but also poems, plays and fiction for older children such as the ‘Princess Mirror-Belle’ series. Julia is a very committed supporter of libraries and also Northern Children’s Book Festival which she has visited many times. View Julia Donaldson’s books on the online library catalogue.

Photo: Julia Donaldson and her husband at the Northern Children’s Book Festival

Just a brief update on my own reading. I am continuing with the C.J. Sansom books but am also reading a wonderful children’s book by local author Eva Ibbotson who sadly died last year. The book, ‘One Dog and His Boy’, describes the dramatic actions of Hal who discovers that his new pet Fleck is only on loan from a dog rental agency. View Eva Ibbotson’s books on the online library catalogue.

Finally our community library in Jesmond has reopened to the public today! The library will feature new doors, a new community room, new boiler, new accessible public toilet, new flooring and lighting system, and self issue facilities for books and other media.  The local town crier will be announcing the opening of the library around the streets of Jesmond and encouraging everyone to visit.

Janice Hall
Libraries Development Manager (Communities)

Share on Facebook

The latest blog post by the Libraries Development Manager for community libraries…

March and April have been complete ‘reading months’ in so many ways for me. In March we were all involved in World Book Day and World Book Night. I had the pleasure of accompanying the Lord Mayor when she distributed copies of Muriel Sparks’ ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie’ to customers at Starbucks in the centre of Newcastle.

I also shared the enthusiasm of children from Sacred Heart RC Primary school who visited Fenham Library dressed up as fictional characters to listen to stories and vote for their favourite books. The value of reading was emphasised by Henrietta Dombey, Professor Emeritus of Literacy in Primary Education, who was the keynote speaker at our annual Love Books conference. As we work closely with teachers to enthuse children with a love of reading Henrietta described the many  social, emotional, and financial benefits of reading. The creative work schools have done to promote reading to children in their lessons  was on display at City Library.

Throughout our libraries we use every opportunity to link current events to children’s reading. The Royal Wedding was a very good example but now throughout the summer the theme will be the circus as part of the Summer Reading Challenge. In November many children’s authors will be coming to Newcastle to take part in Northern Children’s Book Festival, watch out for more details soon.

Finally my own reading experiences! On World Book Night I was given a copy of ‘Dissolution’ by CJ Sansom. This deals with murder and mystery in the middle ages which is not my favorite fiction genre. I was, however, gripped by this book and not only have I passed it on to lots of other people I have also gone on to read other titles by this author. This is the power of reading, the old cliché of being transported to other times and places.

Let’s not forget the fun in reading with a return to children’s fiction. ‘The Wrong Pong’ by Stephen Butler is the book we are promoting across Newcastle for The Big Juice Read. This deals with the difficulties of life for Neville as he is transported down the toilet to join the Pongs but in true fairy tale fashion they all live happily ever after!

Share on Facebook

It may be cold, damp and dark outside and the last Christmas lights have faded but you will find our libraries warm, welcoming and bright. If finances are fraught after the Christmas season, our libraries offer most services not at a sale price but absolutely free. Throw off the winter blues and come to the library to explore a great book, use the internet or learn something new!

If, like me, your home is quiet as the family retreat after Christmas get together to come to the library to meet friends at one of our many reading groups or even meet up with friends or relatives on Facebook.

Fenham Library will reopen soon as damage caused by the winter weather is almost repaired. We will be continuing to improve our community libraries in the New Year with the roll out of self-service to Jesmond and Blakelaw Libraries. We are also looking forward to providing lots of activities for adults and children in our libraries – everything from Animals of the Ark activities and mask making to celebrating our Geordie dialect. So come along and enjoy the winter wonderland of libraries as there’s so much to do!

Janice Hall
Libraries Development Manager, Community Libraries

Share on Facebook

…many great writers have terrified their readers with tales of witches. One of our own local authors, Lynn Huggins-Cooper, delights children with a spooky story set here in Newcastle called ‘Walking with Witches’. Copies of the book have been distributed to  various venues across the city by our young volunteers and children are invited to read it, let us know where it was found and then pass it on.

Another witchy tale, this time for younger children, features a loveable witch called Winnie. Korky Paul, the energetic and interactive illustrator, will be visiting schools and libraries as part of Northern Children’s Book Festival. On Saturday 20 November Korky Paul along with over 25 other popular  children’s authors and illustrators will be taking part in the  Gala Day event at Mortimer Community College. Whether you like to read about spooky haunted houses, ferocious dinosaurs, or wacky space aliens, all the out-of-this-world creatures you can imagine are stepping from the pages of the country’s best-loved children’s books at this year’s event.

No reference to witches would be complete without a mention of the master storyteller Roald Dahl. Recently a performance of his book ‘The Witches’, took place at Moorside Library. Library assistant Claire Toyne received one of Newcastle City Council’s star awards for her work with children on the production and performance of the play in one of our smallest libraries!

Janice Hall
Libraries Development Manager, Communities
janice.hall@newcastle.gov.uk

Share on Facebook

I thought I would begin by sharing my summer at work and play. This has been a summer of new experiences for me. It began with youth hostelling in the Lake District, attending my first Polish all day/all night wedding and enjoying the company of lifetime devotees of the Harley-Davidson in Laconia near Weirs Beach on Lake Winnepesaukee in America.

Work has also been a busy summer of new experiences. The library service offers a Summer Reading Challenge to children aged from 7 to 11 every year and this year for the first time over 30 young people aged from 16 to 20 volunteered to help us which proved very successful. This summer library staff and volunteers have been out in shopping centres, community and sports centres, in parks and fields to promote the Summer Reading Challenge. With the theme of ‘Space Hop’ there have been many activities to promote reading including comic and author workshops, building spacecrafts and even three Dalek invasions!

I had the opportunity to refer to all this activity with another of my new experiences, putting a question to the panel during Radio 4’s Any Questions? programme recorded in Newcastle in August. Having referred to the outstanding visitor figures for the City Library the rapturous applause from the audience gave me quite a thrill!

With autumn fast approaching lots of things are happening in our libraries. Outer West is the latest library to go self -service and now has many new features including a new relax area where coffee will be available and a new look children’s area. East End will follow in October, Blakelaw in November and Jesmond library will be having major improvements carried out early 2011.

Activities taking place in the community libraries in the Autumn include health taster sessions, smoothy bike rides and much more as part of the Time to Get Moving campaign. Children will be invited to join in The Big Juice Read as part of the Newcastle Juice Festival by reading Walking with Witches written by local author Lynn Huggins Cooper. There will be lots of witchy events taking place during the half term holidays in libraries. Finally the Northern Children’s Book Festival takes place in November with children’s authors visiting libraries and schools in the city with a free spectacular gala day at Mortimer College on Saturday 20th November. Details of all of these events will be listed on this website.

Janice Hall
Libraries Development Manager, Communities
janice.hall@newcastle.gov.uk

Share on Facebook