Pictured, L-R from back row: Maggie, Helen, MP Alberto Costa, Cllr Mrs Janet Forey, Liz
Ten years ago, on 3rd October, 2016 we opened our doors as a new community managed library!
To celebrate our 10 year anniversary, last Friday we held a celebration at Narborough Parish Centre. We celebrated with our volunteers who keep the library running, and our friends of the library who support us. Our special guests were Debbie, our Support Officer from Leicestershire County Council, who has been invaluable over the years. From our community we invited a local police representative, the ward for Narborough and Littlethorpe, Cllr Mrs Janet Forey, who is chair of the district council, and MP Alberto Costa.
It’s always fantastic when we get together for social activities. We chatted, enjoyed homemade cakes and nibbles, and finished with cutting a cake. The cake was a replica of the one we had to celebrate the opening of the library 10 years ago, it was a lovely way to look back at our beginnings and reflect on how the library has grown.
We listened to speeches from a few individuals around the library.
Debbie from Leicestershire County Council praised us:
…The fact you’re still here shows just how much determination and teamwork there’s been. Everyone involved, in any way at all, should feel incredibly proud. To still be here 10 years on is amazing in itself – but to have built something that’s not just surviving, but thriving, is something really special.
Maggie, who was our first chairperson, and after 10 years, is still part of our team. Looked back on the work she, and a team of trustees took on to save the library:
The first inkling that most of us had of potential closure of Narborough library was at an Leicestershire County Council arranged public meeting at the old Parish building, on 19 Nov 2015. The primary purpose of which was noted as “to discuss provision of mobile library services once the library closure takes place”. Only 2 members of the public attended due to very poor publicity. However following this meeting and pressure from local people, letters to the Journal, posters and leaflets, a further meeting was arranged in January 2016 facilitated by the Parish. At this meeting the head of Library services Nigel Thomas, along with Ray Hurst Relationships manager at Leicestershire County Council outlined why had made the proposals and what sort of service Narborough could expect if the building closed, which was a mobile library visiting us twice a week. Also that if a group could be formed and a business plan provided to Leicestershire County Council, consideration would be made for a CML to be formed for Narborough…a steering group of 11 came together to provide a bid to manage the library. Little did we know it was to become a full time job.
We were very lucky too in the support and help given to us by Penny and Susie, who were the existing librarians at Narborough Library. Whose jobs we were taking on. Although there was masses of hard work, meetings and paper work, we couldn’t lose sight of the importance of recruiting volunteers and keeping the local community informed, encouraging but not dragging people with us. We also tried to incorporate some FUN! As well as fund raising.
You can tell I’d never had to run a business before. However fortunately expertise and willing volunteers have found a way plus
excellent and continued support from our Leicestershire County Council officers and at the Hub in Wigston and all of the wonderful people represented here today, so we celebrate our 10 years of success and becoming a real asset for our communities.
Andrea, who, with Lorna, co-ordinates the ‘Friends of the Library’ scheme told us about it:
The people who belong to our membership scheme, which was set up in 2017 and it is something that has remained stable since then. At the time as Debbie will know, we were fully supported by Leicestershire County Council, in terms of our funding. But we were aware that this help would taper off over a number of years. So quite early we decided it was very important that we looked at some other source of funding. One of those was to set up a ‘Friend’ scheme. Now what’s involved in a friend scheme? It’s a £10 membership every year, with additional donations very welcome. Membership is open to anybody. The volunteers, people in the community, just people who want to keep the library in Narborough and Littlethorpe. On the whole over a few years now we have raised around £1,000 a year, we are extremely grateful for everybody’s support in doing that.
Helen, who has been our chairperson for 8 years, gave insight into how much the library means to the villages :
More than 10 years ago, a small group of very determined people looked at a village that might lose its library and decided that simply wouldn’t do. Chief among them was Maggie, who we also need to thank for organising this event today.
But of course, no one person runs a library — it takes a small army, and we happen to have a brilliant one. To every volunteer who’s ever done a shift on the desk, run a group, helped at a book sale, or quietly kept the whole thing ticking over behind the scenes — thank you. You are, quite literally, the library. Books on shelves are just furniture without you.
We’re also hugely grateful to the Parish Council for their support and to our friends at the county council — particularly Debbie, who has been with us since the beginning. Thanks also to local businesses both large and small for their contributions in grants and donations. A special thank you to Andy at Cafe Dales for sustaining many a shift with free coffees. The generosity, kindness and community spirit is quite literally heartwarming. And of course — none of this means a thing without the people who actually walk through the door. To all our library users: thank you. You’re the reason any of this exists at all. Every book borrowed, every group joined, every child who’s discovered a new favourite story, every person who’s just popped in for a chat and a change of scene — that’s the whole point of the enterprise, and you’ve made it worth every minute of the effort.
So — ten years in. Not bad for something that started, as these things often do, with a few people, a lot of nerve, and absolutely no idea how much paperwork would be involved.
But this isn’t really a talk about looking back — it’s called Onwards and Upwards for a reason. We’ve spent a decade proving that a small community library isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity — a place to borrow a book, get out of the rain, say hello to a neighbour, or let your kids loose on the picture books for twenty blessed minutes of peace. The next ten years are ours to shape, and if the last ten are anything to go by, we’re in very good hands.
Here’s to the next ten years. Onwards and upwards!
MP Alberto Costa joined us, listened with interest and stayed around for a piece of cake:
Can I just say it’s a pleasure, it really is a pleasure to be back here. It’s amazing how time flies, and 10 years has gone by in a blink of an eye. And here we are but It is a pleasure to be here. Without people like yourself, without people like Helen, without all the volunteers, and without people who use the library, without the friends of the library. We wouldn’t have a local community. You are the backbone of the local community, so can I express as the local MP my sincere gratitude to you Maggie for the work that you’ve done and continue to do…Really, at the heart of our communities, up and down our country are people like Maggie, people like Helen, people like Debbie, people like yourselves, that get involved in the local community.
Our groups, Wriggly Readers, Busy Hands and Minds, the Board Game group, and the Digital Drop-in all had their own stand to put a spotlight on the wonderful work they do. There was also a display about the library and its history and noting our journey over the years, our achievements in supporting our villages and the history of the building.
We cannot overstate our thanks to everyone who has supported the library. Our volunteers, our support team from LCC, and our library members, that’s YOU, who make it all worthwhile.
