Library Service wins £25,000 for cultural hub plan
The council’s Libraries Service will soon be ‘Making Waves’ after securing a £25,570 chunk of the £200,000 Public Library Improvement Fund (PLIF), for its proposal to turn local libraries into cultural hubs.
Inverclyde’s Library Service was one of just 10 Scottish, public library services to win a share of the £201,269 PLIF, which supports the transformation and modernisation of public libraries through creative projects.
Councillor Jim Clocherty, Convener of Inverclyde Council’s Education & Communities Committee, said, “The Making Waves project is about transforming our libraries into centres for culture and creativity. We then want to use culture and creativity as tools to get the whole community involved with the local authority and with each other in a way which promotes the wellbeing of our society.
“We have already identified key creative and cultural experts who we would like to design, plan and deliver sessions on art (including sessions tailored to suit people with Autism), creative writing, song writing and writing graphic novels.”
Culture Secretary, Fiona Hyslop, said, “I congratulate all the successful applicants to this year’s Public Library Improvement Fund. The funding of over £200,000 announced today will help libraries across Scotland build on the excellent service they already provide and become welcoming spaces to reduce social isolation and help people make positive connections.
“This forms part of a total of £450,000 funding from the Scottish Government, which also supports the national public library strategy, the One Card project and Every Child a Library Member.”
The PLIF is administered by the Scottish Library & Information Council on behalf of the Scottish Government. PLIF is distributed annually to support innovation within the public library sector. The fund plays a key role in helping library services achieve the vision set out by the national public library strategy, Ambition & Opportunity. Projects address a wide range of issues such as literacy, digital training and social isolation.
SLIC Chief Executive Pamela Tulloch added, “This year’s winning PLIF bids reflect the diversity of activities taking place in modern libraries. We have a variety of innovative projects. Alongside reading and literacy initiatives, there are projects designed to help people improve their health and wellbeing, learn new digital skills and take part in more cultural and creative activities. People are now using their library as a space to learn, access digital technology and take advantage of community-based projects, which have been enhanced through PLIF.
“The additional funding provided to library projects will ensure that services continue to serve the community and help meet the aims of our public library strategy for Scotland.”