Category: 91Èȱ¬;
Radio 4
Date: 11.07.2005
Printable version
On 11 July the 91Èȱ¬ and public libraries launch a groundbreaking
partnership which will offer millions of people new and richer ways
to get involved with learning, culture and the community.
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The partnership will help the 91Èȱ¬ deliver major learning
campaigns such as RaW (Read and Write), the adult literacy campaign.
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Speakers at the event celebrating the start of the partnership
include 91Èȱ¬ Director-General, Mark Thompson, and David
Lammy, new Minister for Culture.
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Mark Thompson says: "We see the building of external
partnerships as a key characteristic of the 91Èȱ¬ of the future.
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"Partnerships can help us create more public value
and turn the 91Èȱ¬ into a resource for the whole nation."
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This summer, every library service is meeting with the
91Èȱ¬ in a series of workshops to generate ideas and activities to bring
the literary campaign to life across the UK.
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Liz Cleaver, Controller of Learning and Interactive,
says: "We are really excited to be working with libraries in this new
strategic way because they know how to inspire people's learning, reading
and community involvement.
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"Partnerships are the cornerstone of our new learning
strategy - to deliver bigger, longer, more impactful campaigns - and
this is the first major one we're announcing."
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In addition, a one-year pilot, which started last autumn,
is exploring ways to link 91Èȱ¬ Radio and book related programmes with
library users - such as:
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Experimental listening posts in 30 libraries across the country to bring
Radio 4's archive of author recordings to a wider audience and to explore
the use of digital radio in libraries
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Training young library users to become roving book reporters
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A joint project with Radio 4's Woman's Hour and Orange Prize for Fiction
to find the best of the ten winners of the Orange Prize
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A new navigation page on Radio 4's website to help readers in libraries
to find all book-related content easily
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A downloadable information page for library reading groups
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A Radio 4 Open Book library special
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Controller of Radio 4 and 91Èȱ¬ 7, Mark Damazer, says:
"The potential in this partnership for increasing people's enjoyment
and consumption of books is enormous."
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The 91Èȱ¬ Radio pilot and negotiations for the 91Èȱ¬ Learning
partnership are being led by The Reading Agency. The Reading Agency
brokers major partnerships for libraries and runs national programmes
to help them work together as a national force, working with partner
library bodies including the Society of Chief Librarians and the Museums,
Libraries and Archives Council (MLA).
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Miranda McKearney, the Director of the Reading Agency
says: "Public libraries face major changes in modernising and keeping
reading at the heart of their mission.
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"They're changing fast, and it's fantastic to see the
91Èȱ¬ waking up to their power to reach right into local communities to
inspire people to read and learn."
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The Reading Agency's work in developing the 91Èȱ¬ partnerships
has been funded by Arts Council England and MLA.
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Mark Wood, MLA's Chair, says: "This is such a powerful
partnership. People love and trust their libraries, which are at the
heart of our communities and perfectly placed to work with the 91Èȱ¬,
supporting campaigns like RaW on the ground.
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"With their combined reach and complementary services,
these two great institutions will break new ground in informing and
entertaining people."
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Notes to Editors
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More than half the UK population are members of their local public library.
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The library network spans 4,145 branches and 16,900 other service points,
and offers access to 32,000 computer terminals as part of the People's
Network.
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UK libraries had 337m visits in 2003-2004, up 14 per cent on the previous
year, and 341m books were borrowed.
