THIS WEEK


The Lead Story Library of the Year


Library of the Year Harrogate Library triumphs on nine-strong shortlist


The nine shortlistees for the Library of the Year come from across the UK and span various modes of operating, but books remain at the heart of each outfit


Benedicte Page & Natasha Onwuemezi


N


orth Yorkshire’s Harrogate Library has won The Bookseller’s Library of the Year Award 2019. A further eight


libraries are also celebrated on the shortlist, unveiled today, including a school library and a specialist audiobook library. The award, run in partnership with charit


The Reading Agency, was judged by Penguin General m.d. Joanna Prior; The Reading Agency’s head of publisher partnerships Fraser Hutchinson; Paul Davighi, UK country manager of sponsor Rakuten Overdrive; Miles Stevens-Hoare, general manager of W F Howes, also a sponsor; librarian-turned- library campaigner Andrew Coburn; and a team from The Bookseller. The shortlist was compiled from a number of entries submited to The Bookseller in May. Harrogate Library’s energetic approach and packed programme has seen it become a real centre of the communit, with a strong track record across the board: with children, with older teenagers, experienced adult readers and library newcomers alike. It won on a shortlist which


presented strong competition: two Scotish libraries (newly refurbished Montrose Library and high-achieving Shetland Library); an outstanding school library in Solihull’s Arden Academy; Eltham Library, with its literary play space for children, The Enchanted Story Garden; Libraries NI, the


06 12th July 2019


only full library service to be recognised this year; the unique London Library, with its impressive lending collection; and audiobook library Listening Books. For the first time, The Bookseller’s Library of


It’s a moment to stop and celebrate the energy and creativity of librarians, and the tangible benefits and impact that libraries have


the Year shortlist also includes a commenda- tion for a volunteer-run library, Preston Communit Library in Brent. Although the award supports professionally-run libraries with paid and qualified staff, this year we felt there should also be some recognition of the commitment and hard work shown by volun- teers who keep a form of library provision in their communit against the odds. Overdrive’s Davighi said: “There was a high standard of entrants for the Library of the Year Award this year; what was in evidence with all the shortlisted libraries was the tenacit and ingenuit of their outreach work. Harrogate is a powerhouse in its communit and a great hub for books and reading. The library offers an atractive array of courses and opportuni- ties for interest groups to meet and, at the same time, combines with a local theatre and a bookshop to help promote its service as a real venue for access to literature.” W F Howes’ Stevens-Hoare added: “All of the entries demonstrated the value that librar- ies deliver to their communities, as well as the enthusiasm for what librarians do. Harrogate showed an exceptional connection with its localit, along with creativit and dedication that ensued its impact was, and is, very powerful.” The Reading Agency’s


Fraser Hutchinson, The Reading Agency


Hutchinson added: “It’s a moment to stop and celebrate the energy and creativit of librari- ans, and the tangible benefits and impact that libraries have brought to their local areas. Harrogate Library has exemplified this: an incredibly popular hub at the heart of the communit, with a fantastic outreach programme. It is fundamentally focused on the power of books and the


library space to change lives, and bolsters this through a range of truly inclusive programmes and events.”


Library of the Year


Harrogate Library North Yorkshire


H


arrogate Library is the busi- est library in North Yorkshire, with visitor numbers “stead-


ily rising”, says Harrogate & Craven area librarian Hazel Smith, who puts the library’s success down to a will- ingness to try new things, and raising its profile as a community space . The library—reconfigured in a


major redesign nearly 10 years ago, which opened up its internal space and added a glass ceiling to introduce more light—caters for all ages and all sectors of its community. Library staff and volunteers have visited not just local schools and under-five groups, but also food banks, supermarkets and local churches, to promote the library and recruit new members.


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