Lobby against Lewisham Library Cuts

There's a lobby of Lewisham Council's Mayor and Cabinet meeting tomorrow  (Wednesday 13 July) in protest against cuts to library services in the borough. Another lobby is planned for the following Wednesday's full Council meeting.

Campaigners say: 'Lewisham Council has made a decision to cut £1 million from the libraries budget. The Council’s preferred option is to remove staff from 4 of our libraries: Catford, Forest Hill, Manor House and Torridon Road. The council hopes that these libraries will then be run by local volunteer organisations. Unison, (the library staff's trade union) believes that if these plans are implemented then:

- Professional staff will not be available in these libraries

-Opening times will be reduced

- If there are not enough volunteers, then libraries will close

-Library usage and services to the community will be reduced

- Vulnerable users won’t be able to access library services'.

Action so far has included a strike by library workers on 5th July that closed three of the libraries under threat - Manor House, Torridon Road and Forest Hill, and a march on 21 May that saw hundreds of protestors march to the Town Hall in Catford:

More information from: http://savelewishamlibraries.blogspot.co.uk

Save Lewisham Libraries demo today

There's a demonstration today (Saturday May 21st) to opposed proposed cuts to Lewisham Libraries. As part of a £1 million cut to the libraries budget, Lewisham Council is proposing to remove staff from four local libraries - Catford, Forest Hil, Manor House and Torridon Road. The council hopes that these libraries will then be run by local volunteer organisations.

 

While this may be possible, the evidence from previous experience is that what remains, despite the best efforts of volunteers, is a diminished service with reduced opening hours and a declining stock of old books.

 

The demonstration today assembles at 12 noon in Limes Grove next to Lewisham Library and then marches to the town hall for a rally with speakers. Unison members in Lewisham libraries will be striking today to join the protest

 

Further details at http://savelewishamlibraries.blogspot.co.uk/

The Save Lewisham Libraries stall at the recent London Radical Bookfair,
held at Goldsmiths on May7 2016

 

 

Support the Carnegie Library Occupation - Demonstration on Saturday

It is now a week since campaigners occupied Carnegie Library (Herne Hill Road SE24) in an attempt to prevent its closure by Lambeth Council. The Council claim the closure is only temporary and that there will be a library there in the future, but it is clear that whatever remains will be a vastly diminished service as much of the building is scheduled to be converted into a gym leaving only an understaffed 'lounge' of books.

There is a demonstration in support of the library occupation tomorrow - Saturday 9th April, 11:30 am meeting at the library and marching to Brixton via the also closed Minet Library. The campaign is called 'Defend the Ten' as there have been ten libraries in Lambeth.

 

I went along to visit the occupation last Saturday, and was impressed by the support. There were a couple of hundred people outside and a never-ending stream of people bringing food and other supplies to the people inside. There was a toot of support from just about every passing vehicle.

The campaign has a strong personal resonance for me, as Carnegie Library (along with West Norwood library and the long closed St Martins Library in Tulse Hill) was the first place I worked in when I moved down to Brixton in 1987. It's a fine old building but more than that it has a central place in the Herne Hill/Loughborough Junction community stretching back over generations. Like many other safe places of sanctuary, study and reading, it is now under threat as a result of overnment funding cuts.

 

Authors Stella Duffy and Alex Wheatle show their support

The chess club - homeless following closure - takes to the streets

Personal messages from library users

 

 



 

Telephone box children's library launches today

The telephone box library on Loampit Hill has been going for a couple of years, but now it has been joined by a companion library not far away for children - on the corner of Lewisham Way and Wickham Road

In fact today (Wednesday 2nd March) sees it official opening at 4 pm, with children's author Amanda Swift cutting the ribbon (she wrote The Boys’ Club, Big Bones and Anna/Bella, and co-wrote Guinea Pigs Online and Puppies Online with Jennifer Gray).

The phone box is already stocked with some good children's books, the format being the same as the other telephone box library - passers-by can simply choose a book and take it away, preferably swapping it for a book of their own that they have finished with.

Telephone Box Library

It's taken me a while to get round to posting these photos of the telephone box library on Loampit Hill SE13 (near to the junction with Tyrwhitt Road). Essentially it's a book swap - people are invited to come along and choose a book and leave one behind.

There's some lovely remarks in the comments book. I agree that as someone says, libraries are the 'the heart of civilisation'. In fact why do we stop at just having libraries for books  - why not have libraries for all those other things (most things) that we only use once or twice and don't really need to all have as own separate possessions? Tool libraries, maybe even clothes libraries...

All in all a good idea, though my experience of other book swap schemes is that there is a built in entropic tendency for quality to decline over time unless somebody is actively weeding out the books that nobody really wants. What tends to happen is that people take the interesting books and leave behind less interesting ones - eventually Jeffrey Archer and '50 Shades of Grey' take over as surely as bindweed on a neglected allotment. So please help out by taking down some good books and maybe taking out your share of the rubbish.

Bine ati venit la Londra de Sud - Romanian Eggs in Lewisham

Bine ati venit la Londra de Sud  - that's 'Welcome to South London' in Romanian (according to Google translate anyway).

The press/politician scaremongering about a Romanian invasion of the UK on 1 January 2014 has not been matched by reality has it? But a collection of Romanian painted eggs have made it into Lewisham library. The eggs, decorated as part of an Easter custom, have been loaned to the library by the Horniman Museum. They are currently on display at Lewisham, and will be moving on to Downham library on 4th February.

Next Saturday 25 January  there will be a Romanian eggs day of activities from 12 noon to 4pm at Lewisham Library (199 Lewisham High Street, SE13 6LG), with family reading sessions, craft, object handling and curator talks. Admission Free.

Transpontine Christmas Trees

'It's coming on Christmas, They're cutting down trees,

They're putting up reindeer, And singing songs of joy and peace'

Peckham Square

Waterloo station

My favourite so far - a 'tree' made of books made of trees in Goldsmiths library- the sharp eyed
may  spot Derrida's Of Grammatology, Jameson's  Postmodernism and Fanon's Black Skin, White Masks
contributing to the festive cheer!

Walworth radical history walk

Interesting radical history/geography walk last weekend from 56a InfoShop in Crampton Street,  around the the top end of Walworth Road and the Pullens Estate SE17 courtesy of Past Tense.

How the poor die

One theme was who gets remembered and who get forgotten in the official record, with reference to Orwell's How the Poor Die. We were reminded of Ayikoe Atayi, found dead in 2006 in the cupboard where he had been living in Perronet House SE1 while working as a cleaner sending money back to his famiy in Togo.

Reminded too of Richard O'Brien, a 37 year old father of seven who 'died in April 1994 after being pinned to the ground by three officers who said they were arresting him for being drunk and disorderly... Mr O'Brien's family say that his pleas that he could not breathe were ignored, and alleged that officers shouted anti-Irish abuse at him. Mr O'Brien suffered injuries in 31 areas including 12 cuts to the face and head' (Guardian 14 May 2002)

O'Brien was arrested while waiting for a taxi outside English Martyrs Catholic Social Club and taken to Walworth police station. A jury found that he had been 'unlawfully killed' by the police, but in 1999 three police officers were found not guilty of manslaughter. Nevertheless after being found liable for his death under the Fatal Accidents Act, the police finally paid £324,000 compensation to O'Brien's family in 2002.

Walworth Working Men's Lecture and Reading Rooms

There was also some reflection on the parallels between the 56a InfoShop -  a radical bookshop and archive in the area since 1991 - and an earlier local institution, the Walworth Working Men's Lecture and Reading Rooms in Camden Street. The poster from the 19th century invited people for lectures, discussion meetings, 'all the best of the periodicals' and 'books lent from the library' - all for 'one shilling per quarter'. Though don't think we would want to advertise today 'take your Wife that is, or is to be'!

'Just the place to go when work is over, you can see there all the news of the day'
(not sure of the date of this, though the place was certainly going in 1855)

World Book Night

Tonight is World Book Night, a nationwide celebration of the reading, recommending and giving of books. The recently revamped Lewisham Library will be hosting an after-hours book party, with special guests including Blake Morrison, Sarah Mussi, Nii Ayikwei Parkes and Lydia Syson, along with Sandra Agard. The theme for the night is ‘you should read…’ with each of these speakers telling of writing they love. Other readers are also invited to bring along a 'used' book to gift and to tell people about it.

The events starts at 8pm and is free to attend - but booking is essential as priority will be given to World Book Night gifters. Bookings can be made in person at the library, by calling 020 8314 8430 or via libraries@lewisham.gov.uk.

There's also an event at New Cross Learning (previously known as New Cross Library). They say: 'This coming April 23 is World Book Night and this year we are very proud to have been selected as “book givers”. We have 80 free copies of Philippa Gregory’s “The White Queen” to give away. To get your free copy all you have to do is come to the library on the 23rd between 5pm-7pm. There will be a performance of Spoken Word by local poet ‘Jazzman’ John Clarke, live music, plus our Extreme Reading and National Poetry Month exhibitions are still on display. Light refreshments will be served. It promises to be a fantastic evening so please come early and secure your copy! FREE'.

Invite 100: Deptford Library/Lewisham Arthouse Building Centenary

The current Lewisham Arthouse building in Lewisham Way was, until 1991, Deptford Central Libary. On April 5th 1913 the foundation stone for the building was laid in a ceremony (pictured).

A hundred years later Townly Cooke and Mary Louise Evans are organising an interesting event to mark this centenary:

'I N V I T E 100 is an Event/Exhibition on Saturday April 6th 2013 that marks the 100th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone for the then Deptford Central Library, now the Lewisham Arthouse Grade II listed building. In 1913 over 70 people sent RSVP letters accepting or declining their invitation to this ceremony that celebrated this new building which honoured the then progressive idea of libraries open to all.

We are inviting today's inhabitants of the same addresses that attended the ceremony on Saturday April 5th 1913. Copies of the letters and archival material will be exhibited alongside new work documenting the process and response to the invitation. Please join us to celebrate this building and be part of this event. All welcome!

For further details contact townlycooke@googlemail.com or evansmarylouise@gmail.com

Thanks to Lewisham Local History and Archive Centre.

Saturday 6 April 2013 at 4.30pm, doors open at 4.15. Free entry. Step-free access'.

More on the history of the building - the architect Alfred Thomas also designed Belfast City Hall and Woolwich Town Hall.

A film on the architecture of the building with Nicholas Taylor

1990s raves in the building

Extreme Reading at New Cross Learning

From New Cross Learning:

'Thursday 7th of March is World Book Day and we will be holding a Book Exchange, a write-in for the Bridport prize (flash fiction, poetry and short stories) and an exhibition of Extreme Reading Photos. The write-in will start at 6, Book Exchange will run from 6:30pm to 8:00pm and is the perfect opportunity to pick up some new reading material. Bring along a book of your own (or a pile) and try and convince someone to swap it with you. Refreshments will be available.

Over the whole of World Book Day week we will be be holding an exhibition of Extreme Reading photos. We are trying to encourage reading by making it fun and inviting by adding a little spice to such an everyday occurrence, and we want you to take part! Please send us photos of where and how people can read in the most peculiar, strange, weird and extreme ways. All entries need to be in by 28th February 2013. Photos can be sent to newcrosspeopleslibrary@gmail.com. We will print them for you. Be creative and have fun!'

And also their next Big Book Sale on Sunday 10 March, 2 - 5 pm:

'Underneath New Cross Learning, within the endless catacombs of the Lewisham Historical Society, we have accumulated a store of thousands and thousands and THOUSANDS of books, and the time has come once again to sell some off! If you’ve been to one of our Big Book Sales before you will know that they are among the best places in London to pick up new reading material. Get there early for sweet deals. Hardbacks £1. Paperbacks 5 for a £1'.

New Cross Learning, 283-285 New Cross Rd, London, SE14 6AS.

Canada Water Library

At at a time when libraries are being closed down all over the country, it's rare to have much to celebrate on the library front. But an exception is the Canada Water Library at Surrey Quays, which opened earlier this year.

It's a striking buiding outside, located on the water front. It is also striking inside, with a large spiral staircase from the groundfloor cafe space.

The building is already busy, including lots of people studying. Canada Water shows that whatever the future of the printed word, there will always be a need for calm social spaces where people can gather free of charge to read, learn and think.



The building also features the Canada Water Culture Space, which is being run in partnership with the Albany.

Skeletal punks 1991 and 2012

As discussed at Transpontine before, the Lewisham Arthouse building on Lewisham Way was a library until 1991 and was sporadically used for squat parties until the Arthouse took over in 1994. There was a Spiral Tribe party there in November 1991, and now I have come across this flyer for another 'free party' there on Saturday 28th September 1991.  'Live bands' were promised and the look of the flyer suggests it was probably fairly punky. Anyone remember it or other similar parties?

Then I came across this poster for a forthcoming gig at the New Cross Inn. On 5th May 2012 'Si and Breno celebrate 70 years with friends, bands and beers', with bands including Extinction of Mankind. Very similar skeletal crust punk imagery - could the same person be designing flyers in New Cross over a twenty year period? If you are the artist(s) let me know.

Deptford Lounge Opens

In these dark times for public services, and libraries in particular, it is good to see something new opening. The Deptford Lounge, which opened this week in Giffin Street, is part of a bigger building project that includes shared spaces with the neighbouring Tidemill Primary School. 

On the ground floor there is a spacious library, as well as plenty of study space including public ICT facilities. Technically it isn't a new library as it replaces the one previously located in Wavelengths on the same road, but it is a better space (OK I always want more books, but I like the old school random piles of musty tomes that deter all but the hardened biblophile).

There is a cafe - Unity Coffee - run by the Camden Society, a voluntary organisation 'to support the human rights of people with disabilities'. For the first week, hot drinks only cost £1 (a cappuccino will cost £1.85 from then on). I tried the coffee and it was good!

The Lounge has unusually long opening times  -  Monday-Friday: 7am-10pm and Saturday & Sunday: 7am-7pm.

Some people have argued that with the digital age, libraries will become a thing of the past. It is perhaps true that over time the role of borrowing paper books may diminish - though I can't believe it will die out completely. But what will always be needed will be social spaces where people can read, study, and access information and stories in a warm, comfortable environment without having to spend money. Not forgetting of course public toilets which will no doubt also draw people into the Deptford Lounge from the market and the high street. 

Deptford Lounge is on facebook. See also reviews by Crosswhatfields, Brockley Central and Deptford Dame

Deptford Lounge and Tidemill School

Alongside the building of the Deptford Lounge, the adjacent site (the old Wavelengths car park) has been redeveloped as a new site for Tidemill school. Some of the facilities in the Deptford Lounge are designed to be used by the school when it is open and for wider community use in the evenings and weekends. Since building work started Tidemill has become an Academy school (from September 2011), despite a vociferous local campaign against this. The school now gets its funding directly from the Government rather than via the Council, and the Academies Act 2010 requires that when a school becomes an Academy the land and buildings have to be transferred from the Council to the Academy trust (the new company set up to run the school). In this case the land gets transferred from Lewisham Council to Tidemill Community Academy Trust via a 125 year lease (the land would transfer back to the Council if the school ceased to be an Academy on that site). All of this makes the sharing of  Deptford Lounge facilities between the school, the Council and the wider community more complicated. Whether it will make much difference on a day to day basis remains to be seen.

Wonders and Tales of SE17

Coming up at East Street Library (168 Old Kent Rd) next Thursday 14th July, Chris Roberts will be giving a talk on 'Wonders and Tales of SE17: urban legends and ghost stories of Walworth, Elephant and Camberwell'. The event runs from 6 pm to 7:30 pm and admission is free.

Last minute plan for New Cross Library?

Along with other Lewisham libraries scheduled for closure, New Cross library will be closing tomorrow. Unlike the others, Lewisham Council has not yet put in place a plan for another organisation to take it over.

I still haven't heard a convincing reason why this is the case - Eco Computer Systems put in a bid to run New Cross as well as Crofton Park, Sydenham and Grove Park libraries, and was considered fit to run the other three. The transfer of libraries in this way falls a long way short of a properly funded and staffed library service, but at least it keeps some kind of semi-public space going.

It's true that Deptford library isn't far away for the fit and mobile, but it's not in easy walking distance of New Cross for some older people, parents with young children or school parties. And Deptford library is a long way from the west end of New Cross, where let us not forget Lewisham were promising a new library on Briant Street - presumably that site will remain derelict for the foreseeable future, now that the housing that was there before has been demolished.

But there may be another plan (or two) for New Cross Library on the horizon. Seemingly last night there was a meeting at the Hill Station in Kitto Road of a New Cross People’s Library Steering Committee to try and put together a last minute bid to run the library. Anyone want to update us on what happened?

Update: this initiative seems to have grown out of the Save New Cross Library campaign. It seems to have the support of Telegraph Hill Labour Councillors among others.

Library Protests

Good support in South London for the national 'read in' protest against library closures yesterday.

At Blackheath Library authors giving readings and speeches included Blake Morrison, Lucy Mangan and local historian Neil Rhind (see report at Blackheath Bugle).

At Crofton Park Library there was a good crowd, with crime writer Lindsey Davis amongst those giving readings (see report at Brockley Central).

At New Cross Library, the read-in developed into an overnight occupation. I joined them this morning when there were about 20 people present. It was all very friendly - I even spotted a (non-Lewisham) librarian doing a bit of shelving! The last hour before the planned noon departure featured some silliness with the police blocking the entrance to stop anybody else coming in and ordering the security guard to lock the toilet (though he couldn't find the key). Actually the police seemed very embarrassed to be acting as messengers and security guards for the Council's Chief Excutive's office and were clear that as no laws were being broken it wasn't really a policing matter (see more reports at Lewisham Anti-Cuts Alliance and SE13ure).

The selection of messages left by library users makes it clear that New Cross, like the other libraries, is highly valued.

It isn't just about the books - libraries are one of the few public spaces on our high streets where people can wander in to a warm, safe place without any pressure to spend money, maybe just to browse or read the paper.

Nor are libraries just some 'middle class leisure' pursuit, as some have disparaged them. I first moved to South London to work in libraries (including one now apparently on Lambeth's possible closure list), and then as now libraries attracted childminders, pensioners, students, stressed parents taking their kids out on rainy days, autodidacts and aspiring writers from all walks of life.

I would also urge people to remember that libraries are not just about books and buildings, but about the staff who work there. Good libraries have passionate, informed staff who know where to find information, and how to respond to the needs of a variety of users . The various 'Big Society' options being floated to transfer libraries to the 'community' (actually usually to self-appointed and unaccountable organisations who nobody asked to speak for them) don't seem to recognise this dimension at all. One of the bids put forward to take over four of Lewisham's libraries (by people associated with the Pepys Resource Centre) apparently envisages running them with one paid member of staff each and volunteers doing the rest. How is the one worker going to keep the library open while doing all the other essential tasks of running a decent library - selecting and ordering stock, chasing up inter-library loans for books not in stock, running reading groups etc.? Quite apart from the lone working health and safety aspects of this, I can't really see this being a real library service at all.

Save Lewisham Libraries Carnival Procession

The campaigns to save five Lewisham libraries threatened with closure have joined together to call a 'Carnival March and Procession' this Saturday 30th October.

The procession will leave from Darfield Road SE4 (to the side of Crofton Park Library) at 12.30 pm and follow the route from Brockley Rd, via Stondon Park, Brockley Rise, left into Stanstead Road (A205 South Circular), along Catford Hill/Catford Road arriving at Lewisham Town Hall, arriving at 1.30 pm approximately.

The organisers say: 'Please muster at 12.15 at Crofton Park Library, wearing bright clothes and come with bells and whistles to join the Carnival march of protest. Alternatively join us along the route'.

Details of how to contact the five local campaigns (New Cross, Crofton Park, Blackheath, Sydenham and Grove Park) can be found on The Friends of Sydenham Library blog

There's a report at Green Ladywell about a meeting on the future of Crofton Park library. I'm not sure I go along with the tactics of some campaigners which involve coming up with alternative options for running the libraries. This might be a fall-back position, but the point isn't just to keep buildings open but to have properly staffed and resourced libraries. The movement against cuts risks being defeated before it really gets off the ground if campaigners buy into David Cameron's Big Society rhetoric about local communities doing the work for free that people used to be paid to do properly.

New Cross Library Latest

The shutters at New Cross Library have been redecorated with the slogans 'Save Our Libraries' and 'Save New Cross'. The campaign to save the five Lewisham libraries threatened with closure is still going strong with a march with a carnival flavour planned for Saturday 30th October,
starting outside Crofton Park Library at 12pm, to arrive at the Town Hall by 1.30 for a rally.

Meanwhile Brockley Central reports that local Tories have pledged that they would save the libraries from closure if they were running Lewisham Council. What a nerve - do they really think we are too stupid to notice that Councils are planning cuts because the ConDem government is slashing funding to public services.

Saving New Cross Library

The campaign to save New Cross Library has stepped up a notch with a meeting last week and lots of activities coming up.

There's going to be leafleting and petitioning at a few places, as follows:

- outside the library sat 18th, between 14.00 - 16.00; tues 21st 9.00 - 11.00, thur 23rd 13.00 - 15.00 .

- 'school gates' petitioning monday 20th - 8.40 am St James' Hatcham , 3pm outside Edmund Waller School, Waller Road.

- Telegraph Hill Ward Assembly, Tuesday 21 September 2010, 7-9.30pm, Haberdashers Aske's Hatcham College, Jerningham Road, London SE14 5N

There's a joint lobby of the Full Council Meeting by all the Lewisham library campaigns at 6.45pm on Thursday 23rd. September

The next Save New Cross Library meeting is on Wednesday 29th sept, upstairs at the Amersham Arms pub.

Full details at Save New Cross Library facebook page

No decision has been made about the closure of up to five Lewisham libraries, but they have been identified on a list of potential cuts. As a small library only open for three days a week, New Cross is perhaps particularly vulnerable. It is important to keep it open for its own sake, but also because if it disappears and people get used to not having a library in the area it may make it easier for the Council to back down on its commitment to open a new library on the ill-fated Briant Street site.