National Libraries Day is being marked in Suffolk with a series of events across the county’s libraries next Saturday (8 February).

National Libraries Day is a celebration of libraries across the country and in Suffolk there are a range of events and activities to mark the day and show people what their local library has to offer. The activities in Suffolk range from having a blind date with a book in Woodbridge, events to help people access ebooks in Brandon and Haverhill, and a fun ‘Queen’s Knickers’ competition for children to decorate Elmswell Library.

Alison Wheeler, General Manager of Suffolk Libraries, said: “It’s fantastic that such a range of fun and engaging events is taking place across our libraries and National Libraries Day is a great time to celebrate our libraries and to showcase their activities and services. Although it’s a special date in the calendar, these events are actually a great example of the kind of thing taking place all year round!”

All these activities are taking place on National Libraries Day itself (Saturday 8 February). For more information go to www.nationallibrariesday.org.uk or www.suffolklibraries.co.uk :

• Woodbridge Library are launching their ‘Blind Date with a Book’ display on National Libraries Day. This will involve a display of mystery books which are wrapped up to conceal the cover but are marked with a clue as to their content. The idea is to borrow one without knowing exactly what book you have. The display will last for two weeks until 22 February. There will also be a children’s book sale and library volunteer, Eileen O’Connor will also be entertaining children from 2pm-3pm with stories and her puppet, Biscuit. Biscuit was made by a friend of Eileen’s who has worked for the Muppets.

• Saxmundham Library is hosting a talk and question and answer session with two people from the world of publishing at 11am. This will feature Sarah Odedina; former editor of Bloomsbury publishing who oversaw all the Harry Potter publications and now runs Hot Kay, the new children’s publisher and Liz Calder; a founding Director of Bloomsbury Publishing who also later helped to publish Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children which went on to win the Booker Prize. 

• Bury St Edmunds Library will be holding prize draws all day where adults and children are invited to say what they love about the library to enter. Adults can win theatre tickets or vouchers and children can win a family ticket for Curve Motion. Bury St Edmunds Library also has a ‘Frienduary’ theme throughout February, where they are focusing on friends and befriending. On National Libraries Day their ‘Saturday Stories’ activities for children will feature stories about friends from 10.30am to 11.45am. Children are also welcome to dress up as their favourite book character and there are further prizes for this.
• Elmswell Library Friends (ELF) are holding a National Libraries Day Fun Day for all the family between 10.30am and 12.30pm to celebrate the past year and thank the library’s customers for their support.  Children are encouraged to dress as their favourite book character and there will be face painting and ‘Hide the ELF’ games. 

The library is also holding a fun competition for children to help decorate the library with pairs of knickers designed for the Queen! It’s based on the funny children’s book by Nicholas Allan – ‘The Queen’s Knickers’. Children are being asked to design colourful pairs of knickers to decorate the library with a £10 Waterstones voucher for the best entry. Designs should be on an A4 sheet of paper and can be submitted to the library before 8 February.

From 11am, local author Annie Stewart will be hosting activities for children of all ages and at 12noon a special guest will be announcing the winner of The Queen’s Knickers competition. Members of ELF, the Knit and Natter Group and Summer Reading Challenge volunteers will also be on hand to talk to customers about how they support the library and the range of services and activities it provides throughout the year.

• Clare Library are holding a coffee morning and free prize draw. Everyone who visits Clare Library between 9.30am and 12.30pm will be entered into the draw.
• Stowmarket Library are holding a children’s book-related treasure hunt with small prizes for any children who take part.
• Brandon Library are holding a Get Connected event from 11am to 1pm where people can drop in and find more about downloading ebooks, accessing the free Wi-Fi and other online library services. There will also be a book sale from 10am to 2pm and there will be an extra Bookstart storytime session for young children at 10.30am.
• Haverhill Library are also holding Get Connected events on National Libraries Day and the day before – Friday 7 and Saturday 8 February. This will provide customers with a chance to get advice on accessing the library’s Wi-Fi and other online library services including ebooks and music.
• Westbourne Library in Ipswich will be launching a new Saturday afternoon kid’s film club which will run every Saturday from 2pm showing films in the children’s area of the library for children of all ages and their families. 
• Rosehill Library in Ipswich will be holding activities from 11am to 3pm including a lucky dip for children, a book sale and crafts. Members of Rosehill Library Friends will be in the library serving hot drinks and cakes and promoting the library and the Friends group.
• Gainsborough Library in Ipswich are holding the following activities from 11.30am to 3pm storytelling, games, a prize draw and book sale, crafts and face painting.
• Kesgrave Library are encouraging people to sign up as library customers by entering anyone who joins the library between the 1^st and 8 February into a draw to win book tokens donated by the library’s Friends Group. There will also be craft activities for children all day on National Libraries Day where children can draw or make a collage of their favourite book to go on display in the library. 
• Ipswich County Library will have a display with the theme of loving your library and books that people love. There will be a colouring craft activity for children to add their work to the display which will then remain in place for Valentine’s Day and the rest of February.

• There is a chance to meet Hadleigh Library Friends Group at the library from 10.30am to 1pm and there will also be a chance to visit the Scrumptious Sisters cake stall from 9.30am with refreshments, face painting and crafts for children.

• Eye Library are hosting a storytime session between 10.30am and 11.30am on Saturday 8 February with a colouring competition for children aged eight and under.

For more information about any of these events or activity contact your local library. All libraries’ contact details and opening hours can be found at www.suffolklibraries.co.uk  .

 

News release – Customer survey reveals satisfaction with Suffolk’s library service

In the run up to National Libraries Day on 8 February, Suffolk Libraries are highlighting the results of a recent customer survey which show how valued the county’s libraries are.

Suffolk’s Libraries Industrial and Provident Society (Suffolk Libraries) has been running the library service in Suffolk since August 2012 when it was transferred out of county council control which still funds the service. The transfer has enabled all 44 libraries to remain open with the new structure saving over £2million.

Suffolk Libraries wanted to find out how people in Suffolk were feeling about their library service and to gather ideas and comments about how further improvements could be made in the future. A customer survey was carried out in November and December last year. The results show that people are still feeling positive about the service with the majority of people saying they felt there had been no difference in the library service or that it has even got better, despite recent changes.

Over 1,500 people completed the survey from across the county and some of the key facts and figures are highlighted below:

• 92% of people said library staff were excellent or very good

• When asked if they had noticed any difference in the library service over the past year, 53.8% said it was about the same, 39.4% said it had got better and only 6.8% felt it had got worse.

• 86% said the choice of books in the library was good, very good or excellent
• Nearly 60% of people said they visited their library at least once a week and 28% visited once a month
• Although the traditional use of libraries is constantly changing as the service develops, 93% of people who responded said they still used the library for borrowing books. The range of other services and options was also reflected including 7% of people saying they accessed ebooks, 18.7% of people using the free internet, 27% visiting for information and research and 17% taking part in regular activities for themselves or their children.

Tony Brown, Chair of Suffolk Libraries’ Board said: “The results of this survey are very positive and reassuring. We have the entire community and our staff to thank for the hard work that has gone into running the library service in Suffolk and in dealing with the changes that have taken place.

“The support and passion that ensured that all our libraries remained open has carried forward and although we are not complacent and there is still work to do, it cannot be underestimated how positive the position in Suffolk is compared to many other library services across the country. We are very grateful for this feedback and for the many helpful and constructive comments which we have received. “

Some additional comments received from the survey:

“I am amazed that we still have such an excellent service. I moved here from the London borough of Brent where 50% of libraries have been closed. So I know how lucky I am to be here.”

“Haverhill Library is the best library that I have ever attended. The staff treat me like one of their own. I look  forward to coming in every day, as I always receive such a warm welcome. If I have any questions the staff are more than happy to answer my questions. They always go out of their way to listen to me, and it goes without saying, that they go the extra mile. I think they should be voted best in the country, because they truly are, thank you.”

The recent customer survey focused on the service provided in libraries. Suffolk Libraries will also soon be carrying out a specific survey of mobile library customers. There will also be a further exercise to ask people what they think of library IT services once the current programme to upgrade the public access computers in libraries has been carried out.

 

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