During the past week there was a reading (though performance is closer to the mark) of Julia Donaldson’s famous book “The Gruffalo” at Goole Library. East Riding Council leader Anne Handley seemed to be present, and participated enthusiastically.
The presence of the Council leader at a public library is great for the library, its team, and participating in children’s reading activities shows strong support for learning and literacy. That is definitely very positive.
Goole library, like many other public libraries around the world does much valuable work, largely unseen. Children’s activities, computer literacy courses, computer gaming courses (which includes skills very important for careers in business and education), reading groups, singing groups, research enquiries, book and audiobook lending, computing facilities. A source of support for those struggling and lonely. In terms of what it contributes to the community, it is very valuable, but that value does not show as income on a spreadsheet, so many see it as a cost rather than the investment in people that it is.
It provides a lot of services in a comparatively small multi-functional space. The challenges of doing that have been intensified by moving in East Riding Council’s customer services counter, and the Town Deal “Opportunity Goole” desks and activities.
The library staff, council customer services and Opportunity Goole staff all seem very professional. It cannot be easy doing their work in the midst of an often busy library. Members of the public visiting customer services and Opportunity Goole are often discussing private matters and disclosing confidential, and potentially very sensitive, data. Anybody sitting nearby can hear address, dates of birth, financial information, employment status, nationality and work permit status, health information. There is a lack of privacy, and you can’t help thinking there is risk in what can be overheard. At other times, when there is a singing group or a children’s performance, the library is very noisy.
It would be good to see the strong vote of confidence from the leader of East Riding Council’s in the library by her (very welcome) participation in children’s activities reinforced by decisions to keep the public library in the town centre and “cultural quarter” with the museum, and to give it more space (including a separate function room) by moving customer and service and Opportunity Goole elsewhere (in the process giving them more suitable accommodation for their work), so that it can continue to add value for Goole citizens. It was noticeable that the Council Leader did not seem to take the opportunity to engage with other library users than those involved in the children’s activity.
The athletics programme has started at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Another positive gesture, and investment in the citizens of this town, would be to retain the 400m running track at the Victoria Pleasure Grounds so that young people can train for future Olympics in the town.
The Public Library and Victoria Pleasure Ground elements of the Town Deal plans seem to be by far the most controversial. There continues to be a gap between the prolific flow of very positive PR from East Riding Council, the Town Council and the Town Deal Board, and what people say in conversations out and about in town. There has been a huge effort to support business, especially big business, in Junction 36, but many members of the public are not feeling, and seeing, the benefits in the older parts of the town. That can be addressed by East Riding Council and the Town Deal Board listening a lot more to what the public want, and achieving consensus rather than sidelining and labelling “moaners” and “haters” of anyone who does not unquestioningly support official policy.
The Gruffalo story is an inspirational tale about a small mouse taking on the scary monster and winning