In The Loop - The Glasgow Librariton for National Libraries Day

Assembly Point GoMA!

For National Libraries Day lovely idea had been come up with by Anabel Marsh about a group of librarians using the Glasgow underground route (essentially a loop) to visit public libraries on route for the day. With the help of CILIPS and of Glasgow City Libraries a tour was put together and promoted and various librarians signed up and converged to spend the day visiting libraries, networking, and improving their knowledge of public libraries. It started as a Librarithon, went In The Loop and became a Shoogle (as you do).

Convergence and Resusitation



Converging for coffee!

 The Glasgow Librariton contingent met up at a slightly harrowing for some (especially those non-locals attending!) 10am on Saturday morning downstairs in GoMA library coffee area. GoMA Library is one of Glasgow’s newest libraries, in the middle of the city centre, housed in the basement of Glasgow Museum of Modern Art.

There was much yawning, exchanging greetings, making introductions, and having coffee while we were efficiently sorted for the day as to schedule by Myra (our Guide for the day giving up her Saturday off to take us round), talked through how to access WiFi, non-locals got issued with Glasgow City Libraries membership cards…

For the locals this quickly became a ‘compare and contrast Glasgow City Library Membership Cards Down The Ages’ session. Naturally having the oldest most hardest-used looking one present I feel I won this. Though the new ones are very swish!

The Assembled Contingent

There were around ten of us in all, mostly from the West and East of Scotland, and from a hugely varied amount of library and information settings – academic librarians, school librarian, charity health sector information worker, law firm librarian, auction house librarian, public librarian… Somehow I don't quite seem to have managed to catch everyone in one photo though...

GoMA Library

We started the official programme with a tour of GoMA Library just talking through all the different area’s and some of the services. It was very apparent that it was one space but which had been zoned very cleverly for different categories of stock and types of service, e.g. the computer ranks, the children’s section, the café and had a very relaxed atmosphere.

GoMA is one of busiest libraries but has a distinctive user base in that many users are e.g. workers who find it more convenient to use the library near work than at home, it’s under an art gallery, so it has a good art section and may do exhibitions that link up with what’s on upstairs…

The other most notable thing about GoMA is that for a library physically in a basement it is extremely well lit and zoned you don’t feel like you’re underground at all.

Visiting GoMA really reminded me that it’s 5mins from my work so very useful for lunchtime potentially, and that it’s also open on a Sunday afternoon if I’m in town. I have used it occasionally down the years, but never regularly. I will use it more now.

1/*

Various librarians paying full attention (!?) with Myra, our lovely Guide in the middle.

 So we all had a browse about and started borrowing out some books ready to go to Glasgow Underground and collect our Glasgow Underground Shoogle Bags to put them in! Hillhead Library was our next visit via our first quick Underground trip away.

In The Loop...

Hillhead Library

Now Hillhead Library (in the middle of the busy West End of Glasgow with all of its shops, restaurants, bars and cultural places and right inbetween two universities) is one I tend to pass by while shopping rather than use. I mean to go in for a look but don’t quite get there. When I think of Hillhead Library I also think of the Taggart episode where the member of library staff from it turned out to be the murderer! It was particuarly satisfying to be in the workroom part of the library for part of the tour - can't resist library crates!

We had a very thorough and comprehensive tour around Hillhead Library during which we exchanged knowledge and discussed common issues that affect different sectors and developing area’s as well as getting a lot of information on Glasgow City Libraries overall and on Hillhead in particular.

View  downwards from upper level

Hillhead is a large and highly used library on two levels which delivers a lot of different services. We talked through some of the changes coming to the Library in terms of refurbishment and re-design of the internal space (from removal of the central issue desk for islands instead through to lift installation to get around the stairs problem) and new service provision in the near future (e.g. MacMillan Cancer Care area) and the issues around delivering substantial change while maintaining existing service levels also.

Hillhead like various Glasgow libraries has very successful bounce and rhyme sessions, storytelling, and is involved with facilitating a number of book groups. As part of the visit I got given the new Aye Write book festival programme (hurrah!) and we were shown the latest Glasgow City Libraries initiative called Scotland's Bookshelf around this which involved choosing two books to represent each decade that the 100 year old Mitchell Library had been operational. So off the intriguing book display of the various titles I chose Greenvoe to borrow.

It was particularly amusing when we all gathered round a new promotional poster re Glasgow City Libraries and tried to see if our various smartphones were equipped to scan the QR code on it. So on my list for this week is to see if I can download an app that will enable me to scan them successfully. Something that occurs to me to do routinely about once a fortnight while gazing at a QR code, but which I’ve not done anything about yet. Its time has come!

And then we were off into the West End to collapse convivially around eating lunch before sauntering out Undergrounds-ward again.

Partick Library



Trees ahoy





Blocks of colour on display

 My over-whelming memory of Partick Library is of splashes of colour  throughout.  

Partick was a fairly quick visit as we were running behind schedule (all that gossiping together at lunch!) and the weather had turned on us a bit so we were slightly bedraggled.

Once within the Library however we were much entertained that Myra, our Guide for the day, ended up behind the issue desk serving a customer (we cheerfully stood and helpfully took photos of her doing this!!).  We then got a tour round the library and talk through some of the services by one of the staff based in Partick Library.

Partick is a fairly old building, somewhat worn in places, with huge rooms, a lovely ceiling and big windows. But the old and the new still manage to combine within it as the MP-3 collection shows.



An almost stained glass look...



My chief memory is of the displays, rugs and posters. Between them they conjured up warm colours and a bright atmosphere. Publisher-themed book displays giving a block of colour, the book display on film icons… Some of the rugs in the children’s section were lovely. The really clever posters in the children’s section (basically large posters printed off as individual A4 sheets and placed carefully together, gave an almost subliminal feel of stained glass to them).

Not Quite The Gorbals (this time)

Next and last on the tour and last stop for our intrepid tour was The Gorbals Library but, alas, I never made it that far having another appointment I had to run for instead so I left the tour after Partick and progressed towards my next appointment (by Underground, naturally).

Overall

I had a really interesting and informative day getting into lots of local public libraries I don’t normally (being a lucky person with Langside Library, my own local, 5 min walk from my front door). All libraries, even within one system in one sector, are substantially different – because of the design and age of the building, where it’s situated, different communities it serves, different pressures on them and hence needs, some being the locus for specific types of activity or use…

What comes over in a tour around several is diversity and individualism, but in a linked-up agenda and service ethos with the roll-out of different initiatives to different places depending on suitability, resource, cost on-going. Pressures and challenges that folk in any sector could relate to, but also thriving used services and lots of new developments in the pipeline. Mostly it was about the importance of the local community and their needs and the sheer variety of those and what the service could do to meet them within existing operational restraints.

Children's section has the best rugs in Partick Library!

Many thanks to all involved in planning and organizing who made it such an interesting day. Great way to celebrate the diversity of libraries for National Libraries Day.

For other blog's and write-up's about the day see Annabel's and Scottish Libaries