School libraries celebrated at the Hay Festival

Recently (23rd May) I had the pleasure of attending a reception for the School Library Association (SLA) at the Hay festival. The event was organised by the SLA and Hay Festival and received sponsorship from Frank Lampard - author of Frankie's Magic Football. 

There was a visit from the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall. The Royal guests were actually delayed due to a fault with their helicopter ( I know how they feel, I often have a similar problem with the CILIP Cymru helicopter*), but it actually meant there was more time to meet with, and talk with school librarians.

The library profession is full of incredibly dedicated and enthusiastic people and none more so than the school librarian.  Many of you will know of the CILIP Shout About School Libraries campaign, which ran from October 2011 until late 2012 and highlighted the excellent work of library staff in schools and lead CILIP to produce School Libraries -a right 

As well as enthusiastic school librarians, there were also many school children in attendance, which gave the event even more of a buzz; it is always thrilling to see children excited about reading. One of the children presented Their Royal Highness's with a selection of picture books for their forthcoming grandchild. 

It was really good to see school librarians and their work celebrated at such a well known and respected festival.
If you want to find out more about the SLA and the work they support, please have a look at their excellent website 

Mandy Powell
CILIP Policy Officer, Wales

*Please note, CILIP Cymru does not own a helicopter , I mostly use public transport

Collaboration in libraries and learning environments - Maxine Melling & Margaret Weaver - CILIP Cymru Wales Conference 2013

Maxine Melling, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Operations), University of Gloucestershire andMargaret Weaver, Head of Library & Student Services, University of Cumbria discuss the changing environment in public services requires different approaches to be taken to how services are delivered to customers. This may result in the development of shared services, the convergence of many different services to provide a seamless customer facing experience, or the development of more active collaborative networks. Maxine Melling and Margaret Weaver have been closely involved in the changes associated with these developments. They have co-edited a book of essays, published by Facet, which offers an overview of the key challenges and opportunities arising as well as presenting some case study material. This paper will provide delegates with an analysis of current trends and some personal reflections on what this means for those responsible for those working in and leading library services during times of change. Recording and post-production by Genero www.genero-productions.co.uk/