2005 proved to be a very special year for the Sligo County Library Service with the shortlisting of Tubbercurry Community Library in the prestigious Chartered Institute Library and Information Professionals, Public Library Awards.

Tubbercurry was short listed along with 9 other newly built libraries from a list of 69 entrants, based both in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

It was a major achievement for Sligo County Council, as this is our first purpose built Public Library to be constructed in County Sligo

Whilst the shortlisting is seen as a major achievement in itself, the subsequent award of the much coveted Highly Commended – Heart of the Community Award was the icing on the cake and in the opinion of the adjudicators, seen as a reflection of the tremendous partnership displayed between the Sligo Library Service and the communities of Tubbercurry. Cathaoirleach Cllr. Patsy Barry accepted the award on behalf of Sligo County Council, at the awards ceremony held in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, England.

A Library Development Plan was commissioned in 2005 and a process of public consultations took place in the autumn. The lifespan for this development plan is from 2006 to 2010 and it will oversee and guide the development of new libraries for both Sligo and Ballymote and the subsequent expansion of the range and diversity of services to meet the growing demand for community based Library services as witnessed in Tubbercurry. It is expected to publish this document in 2006.

Storyteller Niamh McGrath of Pignut Theatre conducted a number of storytelling sessions as gaeilge in Enniscrone Branch Library.

An open day was held in the Reference Library on Bridge Street, Sligo in September. Examples of recent acquisitions to the ever increasing Local Studies collection were exhibited. Library staff were on hand to give an introduction to Sligo’s Local Studies collection, a collection which documents the rich heritage of County Sligo. Work is ongoing on the project to digitise the Library’s Local Studies Collection.

In 2005 the Local Studies section were successful in securing funding from the Library Council and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government to undertake the digitisation of the Wakeman Collection of archaeological watercolours, which captured the principal archaeological sites in County Sligo in the 1880s. In addition, Mr Sam Moore, Archaeologist in partnership with library staff, wrote a comprehensive narrative, commissioned and collected a series of contemporary photographs to document the Wakeman images on the website.

Library staff co-ordinated the digitisation and uploading of the metadata and images onto the Ask About Ireland website (www.askaboutireland.ie).

National Primary School Curriculum Development Project: In 2005, Sligo County Library played a leading role in the sourcing and provision of Local Studies material for inclusion on the Ask About Ireland website. This website now includes a section which is developed for primary school students and teachers.

The online Library catalogue was upgraded in 2005 to allow our members to view their account details, place reservations on items in any of our branch network and renew borrowings online. A customer’s booklet outlining the services available online was created in house and circulated to all current and new members of the Library.

The range of membership cards, which have been well received by our readers, has been expanded to commemorate the renowned feminist and local poet Eva Gore Booth.

The ongoing updating and modernisation of the public Internet facilities continued throughout 2005 in partnership with Sligo County Council’s IT section.

Throughout 2005 Sligo Library has supported individuals who wish to gain experience of library work either as part of their studies or to gain access to library studies.  Participants volunteer their work in lieu of training.  Branches participating in this scheme in 2005 were Ballymote, Tubbercurry and Sligo Central Library and a total of nine individuals took part.

In 2005, Sligo Central Library continue to be our busiest branch with, on average, 480 items issued per day, along with a continuous stream of internet users and browsers.

Issues: 122,695

While World Book Day 2005 was celebrated in all four branch libraries in the County, the artist, John Leonard conducted practical sessions on art work at Ballymote Branch Library. Ballymote Library participated in many countywide activities which were organised through the Library branch network, such as the Children’s Book Festival.

Issues: 12,126

Just two years after opening, August 2005 saw Tubbercurry Community Library register its 4000th member. 701 new members were registered during the year, bringing total membership since opening in 2003 to 4,122. 79% of this number were adult and teenage members with the remaining 21% registering as juvenile members. 

World Book Day 2005 was celebrated on March 3rd with a workshop conducted by local artist Annie West. Annie spoke to a group of children from two local schools on the topic of book illustration and in particular her own experiences of dealing with publishers and authors.

Seachtain na Gaeilge 2005 was celebrated in Tubbercurry Community Library with readings from Annie West’s award winning title Cearc an Phrompa.

National Tree Week was held during the first week of March 2005 and the library in conjunction with the local authority environmental awareness officer distributed a large number of holly bushes to members of the public.

The Children’s Book Festival 2005, which was celebrated in October 2005, was packed full of events and activities.  Quizzes, workshops, readings and competitions all ensured that books and reading were highlighted as a fun activity for all.

In November, RTE’s live flagship daytime programme The Afternoon Show featured Tubbercurry Community Library on its Book-Club lot. Two members, one from each of the library’s book clubs, together with the librarian with responsibility for the library were invited to discuss the title Seven Nights in Zaragoza by Karen Gillece live on the programme. Viewers also saw footage of the library which was filmed in the Tubbercurry branch the previous week.

Tubbercurry Community Library displayed three wonderful ENFO exhibitions throughout the year. A Seeds Collection exhibition was featured during April, Walls to Wild Flowers during August and September and the focus for October was Garden Birds. A large number of schools visited the library to view the three exhibitions and talks and workshops were organised to complement them.

Tubbercurry Community Library hosted the ESB Environmental Photography Awards Exhibition from May 23rd to June 18th 2005. This was the third occasion for the library to host the exhibition, now in its eighth year. The exhibition contained all fifty short-listed photographs in the five categories; Junior, Youth, Amateur, Professional and International. The competition is now established as one of Europe’s most prestigious photographic initiatives.

An exhibition entitled 16 Days of Action highlighting the issue of domestic violence was held during December.

An exhibition on the theme of Recycling was displayed in the library during the Summer months. The children of Cloonacool National School produced some very imaginative hats made from all kinds of recyclable material and these attracted the attention of many library users while they were on display.

An exceptional interactive exhibition entitled ‘Guzzler combats Climate Change’ was on display at Tubbercurry Community Library during the month of December. To complement the exhibition, facilitators from Sustainable Energy Ireland conducted a series of workshops over the course of one week aimed at primary school children. The workshops involved the students being guided through the exhibition in order to learn about energy, the effects of energy use and they also participated in various energy related experiments.

Presentations

Open University Presentation

Michael Smith

Mick Hanly

Michael Moylan

Ongoing Library Activities

Chess & Draughts Club

Book Clubs

Writing Group

School Visits

County Museum

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