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Marc Lambert, director of Scottish Book Trust, has said all children in Scotland should be automatically enrolled in their local library.
Speaking yesterday (Sunday 23rd November) on the eve of Book Week Scotland, Lambert launched a “call for action” to local authorities and schools.
“Every child when they start nursery, primary and secondary school should be introduced to their local library and receive automatic membership,” he said. “If children and young people learn early on to love their library, they will become library users for the rest of their lives. This relationship, between the individual and their local library, is one of the most important there is, benefitting the individual in many different and wonderful ways throughout the whole of their life."
At the same time, libraries must advertise and communicate better with the public, he said. “In order to survive the local authority cuts that are coming and prosper in the 21st century, libraries need to reach out to their local communities in more evident and assertive ways.”
The announcement comes as many local authorities in Scotland are looking to make cuts to local library services, including East Renfrewshire, which this month said it is looking at a budget cut of £325,000.
For Book Week Scotland, which is running from 24th to 30th November, Scottish Booktrust is running a range of initiatives to encourage the public to use libraries, including asking book lovers to write a love letter to their local library about how much itmeans to them.
Five artworks, inspired by a love letter to libraries by author Jackie Kay, will be unveiled in North Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Edinburgh and The Shetland Islands.