Miscellany: “An unorganised collection or mixture of various things” (Merriam Webster), yes that feels like a reasonable description for this blog. This month my only rule is not to mention the words C—d or P——c as frankly I think we’re all thoroughly tired of that topic.
I thought about calling the blog a ‘potpourri’, but that sounded a bit twee for 2022; do people still have those bowls of dried petals? Have I just offended a segment of my readership?! Merriam Webster offered me 84 synonyms for ‘miscellany’, but most either have negative connotations – a clutter, a hotchpotch, a mishmash, a ragbag … my blogs aren’t quite that bad? – or I don’t actually know what they mean: gallimaufry? salmagundi?
So here goes: the theme this month is to have no theme except not to mention … well, you know what.
Picking up on the proposition of my December blog, that libraries are first and foremost about people, let’s start our journey at the Fayetteville Public Library in Arkansas USA, which reopened in 2021 following a $49 million expansion with, among other things a new, 8,700-square-foot event centre and a children’s library doubled in size. The marketing manager explains that every decision made “has the concept of community in mind. Small nooks and meeting spaces throughout are comfortable spots to gather. The Center for Innovation and community kitchen offer services that could help start or boost careers. A dedicated story time room and craft space give relief to frazzled moms of tots. The Art and Movement room will provide access to free or low-cost dance and exercise classes. A librarian close at hand in each section means questions can be answered quickly and easily. The spacious event centre gives additional opportunities for more community members to see special speakers and productions. And, of course, there are the books, the beating heart of every library, regardless of how modern or technologically advanced it might be”.
Staying for the moment in the USA but moving to another public library that puts the community at the centre of everything, Madison Central Library in Wisconsin, which “allows users to choose their own adventures”. Director Grey Mickells says that “What we really began with the renovation of Central Library, and what we continue to build on and improve on, is dialogue with the community”. “From a giant, glowing question mark in the window to the variety of reservable spaces, everything about Madison’s Central Library raises the question — how do you want to experience your library, and what will you learn inside?”
“Thousands of volumes and niche magazines are available to help you explore every topic you can imagine. Find free help on your taxes or get a hand in updating your resume. Check out a portable record player and listen to Dr. Dre on vinyl, or opt to have your library experience guided by one of its many community programs, like The Bubbler. The Bubbler room, located on the ground floor, is a hub for the arts and maker program directed by Trent Miller, the library gallery coordinator who’s also known as the ‘Head Bubblerarian’. The list of programs and workshops offered through The Bubbler range for people of all ages. While the main hub for The Bubbler is at Central Library, other branches also host Bubbler programming”.
Back in the UK but with library events still in mind, the Arts Council is administering the £5million Let’s Create fund to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. “The focus of this fund is to empower community organisations to work collaboratively with artists and cultural organisations in a way they might not have before, to produce creative events that are driven by them and highlight their ideas and creativity”. £175k of this money will be a grant distributed by Libraries Connected, providing £1,000 for each library service to mark the occasion in whatever way they think will be most relevant and enjoyable for their users and local community. This could be in collaboration with other library services or be a purely local celebration.
Turning to a perhaps more infamous aspect of public libraries, but still with a focus on the community and library users: library fines. Public Library News takes a fresh approach to the subject with a challenge to local authority and library service managers in So you’re dependent on fines: The seven step plan to removing your addiction. This good-humoured article sets out to demonstrate how ‘fines’ are counter-productive not only for library users but also for management and staff and offers seven very practical steps that could help kick the fines ‘habit’. Wherever I managed library services I tried to insist that they be called ‘overdue charges’, semantics maybe but the idea of charging for an extended loan always seemed preferable to the concept of a punitive charge. However, I share the view of an increasing number of service managers who want to reduce or remove this element, some having already successfully done so. That said, this message needs to be sold first to local authority finance directors because what started out as an inducement to keep loan items in circulation was long ago turned into an income stream, usually notched up a bit every couple of years. But even in these cash-strapped times local authority officers need to open up an honest debate about this. Anyone looking for a better grasp of the financial issues facing local government may find the website of the Institute of Fiscal Studies helpful, with links to a number of useful publications.
To close, with absolutely no segue whatsoever but a more upbeat theme, we go to West Sulawesi, Indonesia where they have set up a mobile library on a baqgo, a small traditional sailboat. The aim? “To bring fun, colourful children’s books to remote fishermen’s villages and tiny islands in the region where literacy is low and reading for pleasure virtually non-existent”. Follow the link for the stunning photographs and to perhaps put the struggle to maintain library services in the UK into perspective.
Geoff Allen is a senior associate consultant with Activist Group. The views expressed in this blog are his own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Activist.