North Ayrshire Library and Information Service ran three BBC Green Balloon Club events as part of their extensive programme of children's activities over the summer holidays. Children's library staff worked with capacity audiences to make bird food, create customised bird feeders, have a show and tell about bug hunting in your garden and participate in some eco-friendly storytelling.
Irvine, Kilwinning and Arran Libraries participated. Some of the library members on Arran also featured in the Green Balloon Club TV programme on CBeebies on 31 Jul. Comments from parents included, "Lilia enjoyed getting her hands messy", "our family enjoyed the group aspect" and "we learnt a lot". One child's comment summed it all up - "Fun and squidgy!". Added: 18 Aug
The Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC) is seeking to appoint a motivated information professional, interested in contributing to the development of electronic resources for the library and information community. The successful applicant will be enthusiastic about digital libraries and all aspects of online information management and provision. Partnership working is inherent to this role so the ability to communicate effectively with diverse groups is essential.
Download the word documents for job description, equal opportunities and application form for further details. Closing date: Fri 28 Aug Interviews: Fri 4 Sept
SLIC and CILIPS have published a joint response to the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Bill, which aims to simplify the organisation of public bodies and favours the creation of Creative Scotland, a single arts and culture body. The Bill was introduced on 28 May 2009 and is currently being considered by the Finance Committee as well as a range of secondary committees.
The SLIC and CILIPS response stresses the importance of recognising the range of cultural provision offered by agencies such as local authorities and also seeks clarification of the proposed relationship between Creative Scotland and other advisory bodies. The response also raises some concerns that cultural funding focuses largely on the creator rather than supporting programmes that encourage participation in art and culture. Added: 17 Aug
As part of the 20th Scottish International Storytelling Festival, the Scottish Storytelling Centre is promoting Fri 30 Oct as national Tell-a-Story Day. The event is intended as a national celebration of oral storytelling for all ages, and presents the perfect opportunity to hold your own DIY storytelling event.
All over Scotland on Tell-a-Story Day people will be making, sharing and listening to stories in schools, libraries and other community venues. The Storytelling Centre has also developed a range of downloadable resources and promotional materials to help organise and promote events. For more information, or to register to participate, visit the Scottish Storytelling Centre website. Added 13 Aug
A book festival to promote reading and celebrate Scotland’s rich literary diversity is to be held in Elgin next month. The three-day event at the town’s library will feature some of the country’s leading writers and may pave the way for the festival to become an annual event.
The festival, which will run from Sep 17 to 19, will take place at Elgin library and will be launched by Moray MP Angus Robertson. It will cater for all ages and tastes in reading, with sessions for pre-school youngsters, schoolchildren, families and adults. The festival is also a cornerstone of the council’s Get Moray Reading campaign.
Sheila Campbell, principal librarian at Elgin library, said the festival would help put Moray on the literary map: “The aim is to celebrate Scottish writing, publishing and illustration and to promote the enjoyment of reading,” she said. Added: 13 Aug
Fife Libraries & Museums recently welcomed new members, twins Cameron and Ruaridh Penman, who joined their local library (Duloch) at an astonishing eight days old.
Frances Breslin, Young People’s Services Officer, said: “We are delighted to welcome Cameron and Ruaridh. It is fantastic that their mum Lisa realises the benefits of sharing books with her babies. As a wealth of research shows - it is never too early to start sharing books with children. In fact it is best to read to them from the day they are born. Reading with babies creates a close bond, stimulates their senses and is considered the most effective way to ensure children are confident readers later on." Added: 13 Aug
The latest exhibition by Glasgow artist Frank McNab has been created as a tribute to the importance of public libraries in Glasgow and their role in educating those who missed out on formal education. The exhibition opened at the Mitchell Library in Glasgow on Wed 5 Aug and will run until Wed 28 Oct.
Visitors will be asked to use their appreciation of art and literature to follow hidden meanings in the paintings to solve a puzzle. In October, one person who has successfully found a way through the artistic and literary maze devised by the artist will win an original painting.
According to Glasgow born McNab: “Libraries have always been a manifestation of the social cohesion in the area around them. They are the universities of the self-taught. Computer access is taken for granted by most of us, but for some people only the library provides this and allows them to connect with the rest of the world. That’s why the exhibition is called, Oracles in the Community.” Added: 12 Aug
JISC has created a new guide to Second Life to help academic staff use virtual worlds for teaching. Getting Started in Second Life answers some common questions like how to set up in Second Life, what the rules of the world are, how to plan lessons and how best to help students use it effectively for learning.
The aim of the guide is to present the basics in order to help lecturers experiment, rather than them getting lost in mastering the detail of the virtual environment.
Lawrie Phipps, JISC programme manager, said: “With more institutions exploiting online learning it is important that JISC provides the tools to ensure that UK institutions remain at the forefront of this area.” Added: 12 Aug
To mark the 80th anniversary of Anne Frank’s birth, the opportunity to host an exhibition of family photos and artefacts is being offered to cultural services in Scotland. The exhibition has already been shown in Amsterdam, New York, London and Fife.
This 60 frame exhibition is ideal for museums, libraries, town halls and galleries. The Anne Frank Trust has built a collection of period artefacts to accompany the exhibition, comprising toys, clothes and books similar to those that feature in the photos. As well as a children’s quiz and visitors’ notes, a 25-minute film, The Short Life of Anne Frank, narrated by Oscar winning actor Jeremy Irons, accompanies the exhibition, reminding us of the tragic fate of Anne and her sister so soon after these happy family photographs were taken.
To find out more, download the Anne Frank Trust invite and leaflet. Added: 12 Aug
The library service in East Dunbartonshire Council has played a leading role in supporting the second annual Milngavie Books and Arts Fair. As part of the event, Milngavie Library will a Burns song recital and a poetry recital workshop with poet partner, Raman Mundair.
A series of author talks has also been planned and will feature Margaret Elphinstone, Laura Marney, Ewan Morrison, Alan Bissett and Douglas Jackson. The events will be free of charge but ticketed. Added: 12 Aug
Rob Scotton has won The Word’s Out! Picture Book Prize 2009 for Love Splat. Splat the Cat is back in this Valentine’s Day special vying for the attention of a snowy-white pawed cat called Kitten. This heart-warming story was a clear winner with the Perth and Kinross nurseries, primary one classes and under-five groups who took part in voting this year.
Five Picture Books were on the short-list for the prize this year: Stickman by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, I really want to eat a child by Sylviane Donnio and Dorothee de Monfreid, The odd egg by Emily Gravett, Love Splat by Rob Scotton and The bog baby by Jeanne Willis and Gwen Millward.
This prestigious prize of a Quaich is awarded annually to an outstanding Picture book chosen by children and adults in Perth and Kinross. Added: 12 Aug
Information Scotland is the journal of CILIPS, which is published six times a year. The online version is usually made available around three weeks after the printed publication.
Feb edition now online.
Read the main features from the last edition of Information Scotland:
Coming soon: April 2009 edition
Information Scotland is published bi-monthly and distributed to over 2300 CILIPS members as well as an international subscription base. Download a copy of our media pack to find out more about advertising opportunities.
Please note that Slainte News will not be updated from Wed 19 - Mon 31 Aug due to limited staff availability during the IFLA World Library and Information Congress. Visit the blog or follow us on twitter for updates during this period. Added: 18 Aug
CILIPS is seeking nominations for Honorary Treasurer to serve from Jan 2010. There would be a need to liaise with staff in the period between Oct and Dec 2009. Nominations can be made for non-Council members, however, they do need to be CILIPS Members. The Honorary Treasurer is the principle contact for the charity. The position carries a small Honorarium and the post-holder is an ex-officio of Council so would require to attend Council meetings (normally three per year), as well as additional Policy & Resources meetings and the Devolved Nations meetings as required. Please ensure that nominations, proposed and seconded by members of the CILIPS Council, are emailed to Elaine Fulton, Director, at cilips@slainte.org.uk by Fri 25 Sep. Added: 17 Aug
Nominations are now invited for the new International Jodi Award for the most accessible website or web-based service from a cultural organisation. The Jodi Awards will be given on 2 Dec 2009 at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, at the occasion of a joint event with the UK Museums Computer Group. Added: 13 Aug
The latest edition of TACIT, the e-newsletter of the Edinburgh Library and Information Services Agency (ELISA), is now online. It features articles about the work of the Scottish Agricultural College Library and the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Added: 13 Aug
The City of Edinburgh Council is launching this year’s Green Pencil Award, a creative writing competition with an environmental theme, open to all Primary 4 to Primary 7 pupils in city schools. This year’s theme is Think Global, Act Local: Celebrate this year of Homecoming and the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns’ birthday by writing about a Scottish or local environmental issue or subject that is close to your heart. Added: 13 Aug
The popular programme of evening author talks will re-commence at the AK Bell Library on Tuesday 1 September, when Glasgow born writer Robert Douglas is the guest speaker.Robert is the author of the well-known autobiographical trilogy which began with ‘Night Song of the Last Tram’, which describes his experiences growing up in Glasgow during and after the Second World War. Added: 12 Aug
According to figures released by the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability, more than 25,000 adults have been identified as having a learning disability. The figures show that last year nearly six in every 1,000 adults in Scotland received help from their local council to live in the community. These figures could have implications for the design and management of council services, including library and information services. Added: 12 Aug
Brechin library (Angus) is to launch a new home delivery service for users who are unable to visit the library but still wish to borrow books. Staff will work with individual customers who are elderly or have disabilities to ensure favourite books are delivered. The first delivery will take place on 14 Aug, with another scheduled for 18 Sep. Added: 12 Aug
The Scottish Book Trust, Edinburgh College of Art and the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop have been successful in first round applications to the GBP 3 million Arts Funding Prize for Edinburgh, which is administered by the Scottish Community Foundation on behalf of an anonymous donor. The three bids saw off competition from other Edinburgh based arts organisations to go through to the next round. Added: 12 Aug
Scotland's Information
Research Collections Online
Scottish Library and Information Resources
Scottish Distributed Digital Library
Scottish Collections Network
Co-operative Information Retrieval Network for Scotland
© Send comments, suggestions and queries about SLAINTE to Gillian Hanlon. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 UK: Scotland License 11-May-2011
