Library volunteers thanked for hard work
More than a thousand volunteers have been praised for their contributions to Staffordshire’s library network.
Community groups, a health trust, and the first Rotarians group in the UK, plus many individual volunteers, have contributed the annual equivalent of around £1.2 million of their time to Staffordshire County Council’s library service.
Figures from the council show 27 of the county’s 43 libraries are managed and run on a day-to-day basis by community managers.
Victoria Wilson, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for Communities and Culture, said the ownership had evolved from the first community ownership five years ago to meet local demand.
She said: "Our community managed libraries keep evolving and now deliver, or soon will, everything from electric car hire and charging points, zero carbon initiatives and telephone ‘buddy’ services for the isolated.
"It'll also open up to ‘knit and natter’ groups, Baby Bounce and Rhyme sessions and take part in the Places of Welcome scheme.
"While the pandemic affected the way libraries operate, it didn’t affect volunteers’ sense of community and there are stories from Blythe Bridge to Heath Hayes of people helping others during the lockdowns with everything from book deliveries to organising emergency food supplies.
"So many people have done a fantastic job without fanfare at the heart of their communities and I’m proud to be associated with them."
In the last year before the pandemic struck 1,357 people volunteered over a 12 month period.
And as well as making a difference in their communities, some are using the experience on their CV as a springboard to finding a paying job, with 25 moving into paid employment and six into further learning and education.
Staffordshire has one of the largest chapters of community managed libraries in the country.
The arrangement sees the management and day-to-day running of the library taken over by the community group, which has access to the library service’s stock and IT network, while the authority remains responsible for agreed utility and maintenance costs.
To find out more about volunteering at a library, email volunteerinyourlibrary@staffordshire.gov.uk
