Tuesday, 05 March 2013

Hampshire County Council's libraries have more to offer than ever this World Book Day, (Thursday 7 March 2013).

The Library Service is continuing to embrace new technologies and is offering even more services to residents and library customers.

The County Council runs 49 libraries throughout the county and three Discovery Centres in Winchester, Gosport and Basingstoke. It also supports a community library at the Carroll Centre in Stanmore, Winchester. All of them provide a wide range of services from book loans, DVD and CD hire, to internet access, audiobooks and children's Rhymetime events. There are 6.4million visits every year and 7.3milion books, CDs, DVDs, magazines and games are issued annually.

In the year from 1 February 2012 to 31 January 2013 Hampshire's libraries issued almost 2.5 million children's books (2,496,261). This was an increase of 5% over the previous year (1 Feb 2011 to 31 Jan 2012).

A new magazine and newspaper service has been launched for people who are blind, partially sighted or have difficulty reading print. For the first time, anyone who is in this situation can now visit any Hampshire library or Discovery Centre and pick up over 150 audio versions of newspapers or magazines of their choice for free.

In recent years, to keep up with modern demands, Hampshire's Library Service has been investing in technology to offer further facilities. A number of libraries now include self-service terminals and Wi-Fi, and a wide range of online resources are now on offer in all branches.

Another popular addition has been magazines which are now available to borrow from 25 libraries, and will soon be on offer in the majority of Hampshire libraries. Since their introduction in April 2012, there have been over 13,000 items checked out, including titles such as Vogue, Empire, BBC Good Food, Lonely Planet, What Car? and Practical Photographer.

Loans of orchestra sets and vocal scores, used by local orchestral and choral groups, have also increased. The introduction of the new automated booking system ensures that customers in Hampshire and in other Library authorities can access the stock quickly and easily. Hampshire is now one of the largest public library suppliers of orchestra sets and vocal scores in the South East region, providing just over a thousand sets a year. The most popular titles include -

Faure: Requiem, (choral set)
Handel: Messiah, (both choral and orchestral sets)
Vivaldi: Gloria, (choral set)
Mozart: Requiem, (choral set)
Haydn: Mass in C, (orchestral set)
Coates: Dambusters march, (orchestral set)

Then Hayden: Mass in D, Britten: St Nicholas, Mozart: Coronation Mass, Parry: I Was Glad, Mendelssohn: Elijah

The popularity reflects the anniversary of the Accession and Britten's centenary.

Learner drivers can even use their local library to practice for their theory test with an online version of the Highway Code and realistic hazard perception video simulations. This is just one of many e-resources and tools available in libraries for children and adults, some of which can also be accessed remotely from library customers' home computers.

With sales of eBook readers on the increase, libraries now offer free loans of up to three eBooks at a time, which can all be downloaded and accessed online from the Hampshire Libraries website.

Hampshire County Council's Executive Member for Culture and Recreation, Councillor Keith Chapman, said: "Hampshire has one of the largest library services in the whole of the UK and offers so much more than many people realise. Libraries and Discovery Centres are a great resource for local residents, not only as a place to read, but also as a platform for encouraging knowledge, creativity and socialising.

"As people's needs evolve, so will our Library Service, so that we are continuing to bring new and improved services to everyone in Hampshire."

Library members can now download the Hampshire Library iPhone app to manage their accounts from their phone.

• Hampshire Libraries and Information Service

Friday, 01 February 2013

Hampshire County Council has launched a new magazine and newspaper service for people who are blind, partially sighted or have difficulty reading print.

For the first time, anyone who is in this situation can now visit any Hampshire library or Discovery Centre and pick up the newspapers or magazines of their choice for free.

The National Talking Newspapers & Magazines now on offer from the Library Service give access to audio versions of over 150 national newspapers and magazines from popular editions, through to specialist interest titles.

Endorsing this new service, Councillor Keith Chapman, Executive Member for Culture and Recreation, said: "This is a wonderful service for people who have difficulty reading print due to sight loss or other conditions. With more than 150 national titles available, there is something for all tastes and interests.

"Accessing these titles is also very easy. People can simply bring a memory stick to any Hampshire library, choose their magazines and newspapers, and staff will download them. The whole process only takes a few minutes."

If the downloading cannot be done straight away, the memory stick can be left with library staff and customers can call back later to collect and listen to at their leisure, on any USB MP3 player.

This new audio newspaper and magazine provision sits alongside other library services for blind and partially sighted residents in Hampshire such as pioneering reading groups using audiobooks, and IT classes that teach people how to navigate computers using accessibility software.

The audio format also complements the successful 'magazines for loan' service that has been successfully piloted and is now available in 25 Hampshire libraries and Discovery Centres.

• Services for visually-impaired people

Tuesday, 22 January 2013

Residents in Stanmore (Winchester) are now enjoying a brand new community library following Hampshire County Council's transfer of the former library to the nearby Carroll Centre.

The new community library service was officially opened at The Carroll Centre on 21 January 2013, by County Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber

In a unique move, the first of its kind in Hampshire, a library service is now run from The Carroll Centre on a day-to-day basis. Hampshire's Library Service continues to provide the Centre with books, regular visits and support from a member of staff from the Library Service, and resources including a self-service kiosk so people can issue and return books themselves.

The Carroll Centre is a well-used community building in the middle of Stanmore, in Somers Close. It is open five and a half days a week, and already offers many activities including after school and holiday clubs, youth sessions, parent and toddler groups, a children's centre and activities for children, young people and their families.

The move is the result of partnership work with the local community to safeguard a library service for the area following the closure of Stanmore Library in December as one of Hampshire's smallest, and least-used sites.

Hampshire County Council Executive Member for Culture and Recreation, Councillor Keith Chapman, said: "This is a fantastic result for people in Stanmore as it means they keep a local library on their doorstep. By working alongside The Carroll Centre, local community, and Winchester City Council we have been able to find a solution that meets everyone's needs. Not only will the library stay open more hours each week - an increase from nine at the former library, to now 25 hours at The Carroll Centre, but by moving it into an already thriving hub for community activity, more and more people can now use the services on offer, which go far beyond simply lending books."

Carroll Centre Manager, Jool Heller-Dixon, said: "We are very excited about being able to accommodate a library provision in our centre and to offer the Stanmore community a new style of library. The book stock will be located at the heart of our building and local residents and service users will be able to walk in and browse for books and magazines, sit and have light refreshments, chat with friends and join in new activities."

Winchester City Councillor Jamie Scott, said: "I have had close personal involvement in this project, and am delighted with this outcome. I hope that local people will be inspired come forward as library volunteers, and I appreciated seeing a great many Stanmore faces at the official opening enjoying a range of free activities for families."

• More information about The Carroll Centre

Friday, 11 January 2013

Hampshire County Council's Executive Member for Culture and Recreation, Councillor Keith Chapman will be asked to consider the budget for delivering arts, museums, libraries and countryside services across Hampshire in the year ahead, at his Decision Day on 21 January 2013.

The budget report for 2013/14 sets aside £22.356million to continue to provide these services, as well as provide the various grants awarded to cultural, community and recreational organisations in Hampshire. The efficiencies that need to be made for 2013/14 are aimed at avoiding impact on services to the public at the Council's libraries, museums, arts centres, and country parks.

Early and decisive action taken by Hampshire County Council to respond to the national deficit reduction programme, achieved savings of £100million over the last two years, putting the Council in a strong position to tackle future funding challenges, which are expected to be even tougher from 2015/16.

The report sets out how Culture and Recreation services will tackle further efficiencies to reduce their budgets by two per cent to help meet the major pressures and demands.

Like other services, the next two years will be used to further develop new ways of working for Culture and Recreation services, transforming the way some of these services are delivered to make them more sustainable so that Hampshire residents can continue to receive the quality services they need, at lowest cost.

Ongoing support from the volunteers who operate in Hampshire's community museums, libraries and the countryside, and help deliver various cultural and recreational services, will continue to be extremely valuable in future. Meanwhile, providing residents with ongoing and improved access to Hampshire's beautiful countryside and its 2,900 miles of footpaths, will remain a key priority for the County Council in the year ahead.

The majority of savings will come from the Library Service as a result of staff vacancies that will not be filled. More modern and innovative services to the public will also be provided, with the introduction of self-service machines in Hampshire's libraries, for example, to free up staff time to help customers. In addition, greater use of web-based services including online book renewals and reservations will be on offer. An increase in library charges, including library fines is not being proposed.

Among the challenges facing Culture and Recreation services in future, is securing ways to continue to increase visitor numbers and income to Hampshire attractions when nationally, visitor numbers are declining in the current economic climate. Work will also take place to develop more all-weather facilities such as the Play Barn at Staunton Country Park, to allow more people to enjoy Hampshire's countryside venues, even in poor weather. In addition, in the early part of 2013, the Council will continue to explore the potential for setting up a Charitable Trust to support its work, and that of partner local authorities, in delivering and safeguarding arts, museum and heritage services across Hampshire in the future.

• Read the agenda and papers for the meeting of the Executive Member for Culture and Recreation on 21 January 2013

Wednesday, 31 October 2012

2013 will see the introduction of a new community library service for residents in Stanmore (Winchester) when Hampshire County Council's Library Service moves the library to the nearby Carroll Centre.

Stanmore library will close its doors on 20 December 2012, but from Monday 21 January 2013, a new library service will be officially opened from the nearby Carroll Centre, which is a well-used community building in the middle of Stanmore, in Somers Close. It is open five and a half days a week, and already offers many activities including after school and holiday clubs, a children's centre and a wide variety of courses for adults and children including IT.

The changes are the result of partnership work with the local community to safeguard a local library service for the area as Stanmore Library is one of Hampshire's smallest, and least-used libraries. In a unique move, the first of its kind in Hampshire, the Carroll Centre will be responsible for running a library service from the Centre on a day-to-day basis, supported by regular visits from a member of staff from Hampshire's Library Service.

Hampshire County Council Executive Member for Culture and Recreation, Councillor Keith Chapman, said: "Stanmore library had some of Hampshire's lowest customer numbers so by moving library services to The Carroll Centre in January, it means the community won't lose out, and we can continue to provide residents with a local library service on their doorstep. The Carroll Centre is already a thriving hub for community activity so it made sense to work together with them, and Winchester City Council, to find a solution that benefits everyone. As a result, the library will now move to a much busier location where it will be open many more hours per week.

"We can also use this excellent opportunity to bring library services to the attention of more people, many of whom are not current customers, and may not be aware of the range of additional services our libraries have on offer, beyond simply lending books."

The new library services will be officially opened at The Carroll Centre on 21 January 2013, by County Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber. Subject to work being completed on the site, it is hoped that the Centre may however be able to welcome library users in advance of the official opening date.

Hampshire Library Service will continue to provide the books and resources, including a self-service kiosk at The Carroll Centre so people can issue and return books themselves, but the library itself will be run by the Centre.

• Carroll Centre