Replies to services for travellers: Thank you to everyone who replied to me.
Replies to services for travellers
YORK Jones, Alison (Library) [[log in to unmask]]
In York we have scheduled visits from 1 Nov 01 to the 3 main travellers'
sites in our area as part or our Mobile Library being able to operate full
time from this autumn.
We made contact through the Traveller Education Service and went to visit
sites with their staff for intros in order to offer service. (Although not
so simple as that sounds - one very inclusive member of staff had made very
good contacts too which helped but we have lost those for now as she has
moved to another branch and there have been other issues. A few travellers
use other branches but contacts not strong.)
Will go with Mobile at the same time that TES staff go - late mornings, one
hour a fortnight to each site. It wasn't the initial plan to offer services
together, but seems like a good idea to go at the same time. That means we
are going at times when Mums, grandparents and young children are around,
plus children not in school. Would have liked to do after school and whole
family time too, but also targeting Community Centres with new timetable so
rather stretched for now.
Future Prospects, local IAG organisation, are keen to come to help with
basic skills or training and educ needs for adults.
We are working on staff awareness and training, head of TES is doing session
for us soon and member of staff mentioned above will share her experience.
We are keen to develop and share good practice and what works.
Immediate challenges include physical access to sites for Mobile as dumped
materials need clearing, to widen access. Will need strategy for ongoing
solution. I'm pursuing this now.
Also staff apprehension. Have had risk assessment mtg with H&S as part of
new timetable planning.
Liverpool Pate, Elsie [[log in to unmask]]
We are also looking at services to travellers at the moment. Some years ago
we had a mobile service at the permanent site in Liverpool but it was
discontinued before my time. We have it in our Annual Library Plan and at
present I am having discussions with Adult Learning as they do English
classes at the site and I am hoping we will be able to work together in some
way, rather than just turning up "cold" with a mobile library
Peterborough [log in to unmask]
We > actually do not lend much to our local travelling communities as they
are
on > the whole not interested in reading. BUT - we have done some work with
the
health authority and we have done children's story sessions on sites.
For the first piece of work we consulted with the communities via the
schools attended by their children, as these are the few 'official'
buildings they feel happy visiting. We discovered that they prefer to
receive information in video form so the Health Authority decided to offer
us £2,000 with which to purchase health-related videos and together we did
manage to find some particularly aimed at Travellers.
Avon seem to have some quite useful health materials.
We then put them into the Central Library stock with a small hire charge
(to ensure sensible use and get them back!) but free reservations from other
branches.
They are not heavily used but have brought people in to look for things.
The same team then went on to organise a Romany 2000 health fayre together -
with a large event in the Museum > singing and dancing from Traveller young
people, poetry and
storytelling from the older members of the community and the chance for
any of those attending to go off into private rooms to talk over health
queries > with professionals. It was very successful.
As for the storytelling sessions on the sites, we received advice from the
local Travellers Education Unit, one of whom is himself a Romany, who said
we should not under any circumstances take vehicles or large amounts of
material there. They offered their relatives' driveways to ensure car
safety and deterred us from taking a mobile library! Our staff (2 of them)
then
took armfuls of books and roamed the site chatting to young people,
particularly children under 8, and when a group gathered just sat down on
the ground (it was summer and dry!!!) and read the stories. It didn't
bring anyone into libraries but the schools said the interest in books was
noticeable afterwards.
Cambridgeshire Martin Lynda [[log in to unmask]]
We have a small pilot project that delivers picture books to the Travellers
site in our Surestart area in Fenland via the Traveller Liaison Officer -
she also delivers Book Start bags to babies for us. This informal borrowing
from a box collection was considered more suitable for Traveller lifestyle
rather than the usual routine of returning books to a Mobile Library
regularly. However we haven't any feedback yet on the success of this!
We're also hoping to have a Storysack workshop using traditional tales with
Travellers.
Sheffield [log in to unmask]
Sheffield City libraries started a service to travellers and it reached the
finalist stage of the Libraries Change Lives award a few years back.
London Borough of Sutton [log in to unmask]
Wolfson Project undertaken, Extensive work with two sites. Resource list
produced. Mobile service with support of Traveller Education Service.
Carol Woolley
Network of Libraries Project Team
Cultural Services
Sherwood Lane
Worcester
WR2 4NU
01905 426600
mailto:[log in to unmask]
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