Dizzy Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 Lottery funding;-WBC ?1,299,542 Date awarded 30/10/07 Inititive Education Programme Community libraries The project will make library services more accessible to local people and more relevant to modern lifestyles. Funding will allow the library to bring together health, community, learning, library and leisure services under a single roof. This transformation of the service will be achieved by working in partnership with other service providers within a community building, providing a wider range of services than currently possible. Will this now be repayable? I doubt it will be repayable Sha as depending on which way you read that it could be said that this is what they are NOW trying to achieve Think about it... smaller library's being closed and it all being under a single roof (maybe Warrington main library)... with all services more relevant to modern lifestyles ??? internet access maybe ? I've just logged into my new online library account and it is pretty damn good You can search ALL books and material held in ALL libraries within Warrington and reserve them and collect from your chosen 'place'. You can also renew existing books which could have saved me getting fined Not much help for people who don't have internet access though or who don't know what book they might like to borrow or for those wanting to read reference material And something else I didn't know... I could have gone to the local Stockton Heath library and used their computers to access ancestry.com records for free. I guess I couldn't have downloaded them though so it does have it's drawbacks. They have access to some other usually 'paid for' historical search databases too though so may pop down and have a gander at those. I'm off now to virtually see what they have in Warrington Reference Library and may take a trip in there this week to view anything that sounds historically interesting. Care to join me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter T Posted February 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 Changed you mind Diz? I don't like the way they have "modernised" at great cost, Warrington Library. There are less books and it is difficult to find what you are looking for. They would have done better to spend all those thousands on keeping the others plus the mobile library going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 Changed you mind Diz? You sound like Mr T out of the A Team there Peter I'm not saying they should close any libraries, infact far from it. I'm just saying that the online facilities are rather good... and as such I am now more inclined to pop along to the local libraries too now that I know what is on offer and what is available. Maybe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 I've donated quite a few bran new books to the library in the past - can't say they appeared pleased about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 How ODD were your books Obs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 Sure they would have been of interest to someone - and the library got them for nowt! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted February 27, 2011 Report Share Posted February 27, 2011 Sure they would have been of interest to someone - and the library got them for nowt! But Obs, once you have coloured all the pictures in, they are no use to anyone else...... didn't they tell you that's why they didn't want them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry hayes Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 Coloured them in? Well that's just what my wife did when I bought her "the joys of sex". Happy days. quiet nights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fugtifino Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 Hahaha @ Baz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sha Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverlady54 Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 The problem with having libraries sited in schools is that they could only open outside schools hours unless they had a completely separate building, due to security issues. This would stop a lot of the pensioners and mums with young children from using them as evenings are not convenient/dark and weekends are often taken up with family. I thought all librarians were trained and employed, although many are part time!! Why would it need to be in a completely separate building to be open to the public during school hours? What "security issues" (other than the paranoid fear-of-just-about-everything whipped up by the media)? Access to the remainder of the school buildings might need to be controlled - although I thought schools were supposed to be bending over backwards to get the wider community involved in what they are doing. But that's as simple as having a "public" external door, and the librarians desk by the internal door into the rest of the school so they can keep an eye on who is coming and going through there. As far as I am aware, you can't access any primary school unless you have good reason as they all need a code for entry. There would be no way the schools could verify who people were (see the CCTV photo in last week's Guardian of someone at a local high school who entered while an evening meeting was taking place) so their insurance probably wouldn't cover the general public being around during school hours. As I said before, it rather depends where the library is situated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inky pete Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 All I can say is, that it appears to have been done successfully twice before in this borough. And by our half-witted administration at that! So any insurance, H&S, red tape obstacles etc. can't be all that insurmountable! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P J Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 Could I just point out that the Library at Birchwood High School is separate from the school with its own entrance and therefore not really part of the school. I suspect its the same at Padgate. If Ofsted are able to enter any school buliding unchallenged it is an instant fail for the school concerned so this opening up of school libraries to Joe Public replace public libraries is yet another pipe dream. Imagine having to have a CRB check to get a library book out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sha Posted February 28, 2011 Report Share Posted February 28, 2011 The only objective in having libraries in school buildings is to save money, but if there's pots of money like the ?200,000,000 for 'town centre renewal' available then clearly it's not money that's the object....just differing opinions on how it's to be spent! Let's face it Warrington library service is totally inadequate. The town centre library would have been fine in days gone by but the rate of population growth in Warrington has long since vastly out-stripped it's services. The present library is about big enough and equipped enough to be regarded as adequate for a village library today. Both Manchester and Liverpool have a number of large municipal libraries, as well as smaller public libraries in outlying areas, yet WBC whinge about maintenance costs for the pitifully sparse facilities we've got!! What I'd propose for Warrington is the demolition of that ugly monstrosity that was the BT telephone exchange to be replaced with a new build library, architecturally designed in keeping with and reflecting the town centre's Victorian heritage assets of course, but with an interior designed and equipped to provide everything one might expect or want in a 21st century library. The present library building could be retained as a local history library. All of the Warrington local history manuscripts and records, which are at present kept mainly in Chester and also in other areas due to there being no space for them in Warrington, could be relocated to where they rightfully belong. The outlying areas/ village libraries would be retained, maintaining the same amount of library facilities as at present but with increased facilities/ opportunities for community use. Now I think that would be a very good idea for the future development of Warrington's libraries, which could in fact be possible if those at the Town Hall weren't so hell bent on wasting any funding they can get their hands on to fund their airy-fairy plans for an ever expanding Warrington....City.....Hub of The North West....Regional Hot Spot.....Britain's....UK's...Europe's....World's... etc, etc, etc, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted March 1, 2011 Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 Be interested as to where exactly, and for what purpose this money has appeared? We are being told by central Gov that we are strapped for cash, which means Councils are strapped for cash too - so any ideas about expanding services appear rather fancifull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted March 1, 2011 Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 Sounds good Sha but will never happen round here. The present library building could be retained as a local history library. All of the Warrington local history manuscripts and records, which are at present kept mainly in Chester and also in other areas due to there being no space for them in Warrington, could be relocated to where they rightfully belong. Now that is one thing that SHOULD happen. I am sick to death of finding reference to old info only to find that it is in Chester or further afield. Been to Chester Records office a few times and it is tiny and you have to pre-book a visit slot. You then request whatever it is you want to see preferably in advance as some of it is stored off site.. you can only view one item at a time and before you know it your time is up. Anything to do with Warrington SHOULD be held in Warringon !! And while I am at it.... Warrington Museum/Library apparently have an massive collection of old photo's of Warrington and surrounding areas but there are only a handful available on their online images page. WHY DON'T THEY PUT THEM ALL ON !!!!! People should be able to see them ALL and not just rely on chosen images selected by Janice Hayes' for her published books Rant over Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted March 1, 2011 Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 Wasn't looking for this.. I was trying to find my grandfathers war records..which dont exist anywhere Anyway though it was relevant and rather interesting as it relates to Warrington Library A circulating library, begun in 1760 by the projector of the Warrington Academy, was in 1848 united with the museum of the local Natural History Society, founded in 1835, and being taken over by the corporation became the public museum. (fn. 34) This was the first town in the kingdom to open a rate supported library. After occupying hired premises in Friar's Green, buildings were erected for it in 1855, and enlarged in 1876 by the addition of an art gallery, and again in 1881. The School of Art adjoins; it was founded in 1853. A technical institute was built in 1902. From: 'Townships: Warrington', A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3 (1907), pp. 316-324. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=41338&strquery=warrington Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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