host employers. It has enabled library and information-sector employers to unlock the value of the Government’s Apprentice- ship Levy while also building much-needed capacity and skills. CILIP Pathways is arguably the most concrete outcome of We Are CILIP so far, giving us a real mechanism to help build a more diverse, inclusive and representative workforce.
A more visible and impactful advocate
One of the key strengths of any professional association is its ability to speak with one voice on behalf of the entire profession. We Are CILIP sets out our ambition to do more than ever to secure recognition of the vital skills and expertise of our members among employers, Government and the media, and I am pleased to say that we are making excellent progress on this front.
Among sector employers, the CILIP Employer Partners Scheme has continued to grow significantly during the past year. It now represents around 150 leading employers across 20 industry sectors including more than 30 Public Library Authorities (
www.cilip.org.uk/EmployerPartner). The Scheme, with its regular Employers Forum and ongoing engagement by the CILIP team, allows us to promote the value and impact of our members skills while giving employers the ability to invest in (and hopefully thereby to retain!) their people.
We have also been able to strengthen our representation of the library and information profession within Govern- ment. As CILIP’s CEO, I meet regularly with Parliamentarians from the House of
14 INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL DIGITAL
Commons and the Lords to brief them on the invaluable work of our members. At the same time, our colleagues in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are contin- uing to build networks of influence and connections within their own administra- tions.
Building on the confidence and clarity of We Are CILIP, we have been able to engage new Members of Parliament including Valerie Vaz MP and Christian Wakeford MP as officers of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Libraries, Information and Knowledge (APPG LiNK), which CILIP coordinates (
www.cilip.org.uk/APPGlink). As we look ahead to a challenging few years in terms of the economy, and pub- lic-sector spending in particular, we will be working with our sector partners both
to defend library jobs and to make the case for future reinvestment.
International solidarity A key outcome of CILIP’s advocacy work has been the establishment of a strong working relationship with the Ukrainian Library Association (ULA). In the early days of the Russian inva- sion of Ukraine, I tweeted, “Looking at a message from the Ukraine Library Association concerning the cancella- tion of their forthcoming conference. it basically says ‘We will reschedule just as soon as we have fi nished vanquishing our invaders’. Ukrainian Librarians, I salute you”.
Little did I realise that this one tweet would echo around the world, with more than 10 million people sharing it on twitter and thousands more on other social platforms, in the process generat- ing articles in the UK and international press and prompting tens of thousands of pounds in donations to support Ukraine’s librarians.
From this, a long-lasting relationship between our associations has emerged. In August, we were proud to organise a joint session with the ULA in which more than 20 UK Parliamentarians were able to meet with the Ukrainian Minster of Culture, Aleksandr Tkachenko and his colleagues to discuss how our community can best support interna- tional efforts to safeguard Ukraine’s literary heritage.
To me, the message that “We Are CILIP” extends far beyond the UK community and encompasses the global diaspora of British librarians and information professionals. Which is why
December 2022
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