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PEOPLE


Grace Hallworth G


race Hallworth, renowned children’s librarian and storyteller, died in Ashlyns Care Home, Berkham- sted, on 10 August 2021. Originally from Trinidad, her first job was establishing children’s library services in Tobago. Grace arrived in the UK on


a Churchill Fellowship, travelling from Trinidad via intern- ships at Toronto and New York City public libraries. She was appointed children’s librarian for Hertfordshire Libraries, serving in several key roles from 1957 to 1985. Grace had immense influence as a librarian and a storyteller, with her YLG lectures and courses inspiring many to take up storytelling and initiate creative activities to promote books and link libraries with schools. Her library years saw radical changes in society, and Grace contributed to discussions and policy making regarding multiculturalism and children’s books. Through the London Oral Narrative Group, she collaborated with Harold Rosen and Margaret Meek, and had input in the National Oracy Project. And she often represented the UK abroad, speaking at conferences and seminars run by organisations such as IBBY and UNESCO. Like other librarian-storytellers, before and since, Grace wrote several popular storybooks and folktale anthologies,


Diane Rowland D


iane Eve Rowland died peacefully in hospital after a three year illness on 17 August 2020, aged 64. She was born on 26 December 1955, a Christmas baby, and after leaving school she studied for a BLib at the College of Librarianship Wales, Aberystwyth. She joined the Library Association (now CILIP) in 1975 and became an Associate Member in 1980.


Her first professional post was as a temporary assistant librarian at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), where she was soon made permanent and spent the majority of career, with the exception of a spell early in her career as librarian at the Office of Fair Trading. In 1992 she was awarded a master’s degree in Tech- nology for Libraries by University


College London. Apart from her time at university, she lived in south east London all her life.


Diane was a professional librarian in all senses of the word. She was committed and passionate about her work, highly respected by colleagues for her knowledge and sound judg- ment, and seen as a great role model and an example of what a good manager should be: kind, patient, understanding and always supportive and encouraging. More than one person described her as one of the best managers they had ever had, and many colleagues remember her kindness and friendship when they were new to the organisation. She is remembered as a warm, gentle, generous woman who


January-February 2022


was both quiet and intelligent. But the term that was frequently used to describe her was as a truly “lovely person”. She was always cheerful and positive, and these characteristics helped her through her illness.


Unlike many librarians Diane managed to spend almost all of her career working in a library and she was a constant presence throughout the ups and downs of the DTI library service. She was also a real champion for the information man- agement system and would assist and encourage others in its use. Latterly there were name changes from DTI to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and then to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. These changes coincided with the reduction of the traditional library service and she fought hard to save the archives. Her final role was as a Freedom of Information Adviser, a whole new world, but here she applied the same professionalism as in all her work.


After taking early retirement in 2011 Diane was able to volunteer and use her professional skills at The National Archives. She thoroughly enjoyed this work that tied in so well with her main hobby of genealogy. She was an expert researcher of her own family history and would often assist others. Family was important to Diane and she was immensely proud of her niece Evie and her nephews Hugh and Arthur. Diane is remembered with great fondness by her friends and colleagues and will be greatly missed. She is survived by her sister Claire and her long-term partner Paul.


Catriona Hunter, Formerly Dept. of Trade and Industry, with assistance from Diane’s family and former colleagues


INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 53


with Down by the River nominated for the Greenaway award. When she retired from Hertfordshire, Grace continued as a professional storyteller, featuring in British television and radio programmes, and at storytelling festivals in Britain, Ireland, Denmark, and Israel. She mentored many of today’s leading storytelling artists, and helped establish The Society of Storytelling, becoming its first chair. Projects with schools led to developing the concept of story sharing, which focuses on the listener rather than the performer, so that everyone con- tributes equally. This concept became central to her courses for teachers at Homerton College and other HE institutions. All this contributed to the growth of modern storytelling in and outside Britain, particularly in Ireland, New York, and Trinidad and Tobago.


Grace was made an honorary life member of YLG in recog- nition of her work. In the coming months, Seven Stories, the National Centre for Children’s Books (in which Grace played a part in its foundation) will feature her work along with that of John Agard, Valerie Bloom, and others in a celebration of Afro-Caribbean children’s writers.


Patrick Ryan, PhD FEA


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