CILIP Y&H / CDG Y&H Joint Members’ Event and AGM:

Advocacy in Changing Times and the Role of New Professionals

Tuesday 7th June 2011

Lauren SmithVoices for the Library & Save Doncaster Libraries

A Very Undetailed Timeline…

- July 2009: Temped in Doncaster Libraries- September 2009: Started MA Librarianship- June 2010: Joined Save Doncaster Libraries- July 2010: Attended CILIP Y&H AGM- August 2010: Wrote Comment is Free article - September 2010: Co-founded VftL, finished MA, started working at University of Leeds

Brief History of Doncaster Libraries

• Budget cuts • Lack of consideration of community need• Restructuring

• Deprofessionalisation• Customer Service Centres

• Poor management• No Head of Libraries since 2005• Lack of training and support• Poor communication and isolated workers• Management by email• Lack of vocal advocates within service• Low staff morale and culture of fear

Why get involved?

Because people need and have a right to libraries and we are here to protect the needs and rights of people.

People brave all kinds of conditions. So should we.

“I see libraries and librarians as the front line soldiers in the war against illiteracy and the lack of imagination.”

Neil Gaiman

“Intellectual freedom is the basis for democratic systems. We expect people to be self-governors. But to do so responsibly, citizenry must be well-informed. Libraries provide the ideas and information, in a variety of formats, to allow people to inform themselves.”

Fitzsimmons, R. (1998). ‘Intellectual Freedom in a Democratic Society’. Paper invited for the International Conference: Freedom of Expression, Censorship, Libraries, Riga, Latvia, October 14-17 1998

“The public library is a practical demonstration of democracy’s faith in universal education as a continuing and lifelong process, in the appreciation of the achievement of humanity in knowledge and culture. The public library is the principal means, whereby the record of man’s thoughts and ideas and the expression of his creative imagination are made freely available to all.”

UNESCO Public Library Manifesto 1972http://bit.ly/unescoplm

www.savedoncasterlibraries.wordpress.com

www.voicesforthelibrary.org.uk

Aims

1. Share positive stories from public libraries and librarians across the country.

2. Provide factual information about library usage in the UK.

3. Provide spokespeople for the media from a variety of different public libraries

4. Be a voice for communities and individuals to speak out about why they value their public libraries.

5. Support local campaigns to save libraries where it is apparent that the local council has not properly considered the impact of cuts to library services.

Activities

• Collecting stories as evidence of value of libraries

• Commissioning guest blog posts about value of libraries

• Writing articles for newspapers/journals/magazines/blogs

• Media liaison – tv, newspaper and radio interviews

• Presenting at public events and LIS conferences

• Helping local communities set up campaigns

• Contacting MPs and councillors

Festival! Woo!

Eight days in the wilderness…

…was well worth it.

What Next?

CILIP Career Development Group New Professionals Conference 2011

Professional Activism Workshop

Monday 20th June 2011

#npc2011

Twitter: @walkyouhome

Email: laurensmith2102@gmail.com

Blog: www.laurensmithwordpress.com

Tumblr: www.walkyouhome.tumblr.com