From 2010(ish) it was becoming more and more obvious that the fate of public libraries was becoming precarious. This was of concern to me (apart from the devastation that this would cause communities) because I only had experience of working in this particular environment and so knew I could have difficulty looking for a new job. From 2005, I had worked as a children's librarian and, despite the fact that I worked in an open plan library and spent as much time working with adults, knew that I was being pigeon-holed. As I worked alternate Saturdays this meant that I had alternate Tuesdays off that could possibly be spent productively volunteering.
I'm afraid to say that my research was Googling 'volunteer library london.' This would be much more depressing now as it would link to loads of Big Society libraries but luckily then the second option was for the Women's Library. As someone who has always been interested in politics and history this seemed like an amazing opportunity. I was given the ephemera project to work on. This basically meant going through huge files of random ephemera that had been donated over the past few years, sorting it, weeding out duplicates and filing it. I did this every week (I was moved from my original work branch shortly after starting volunteering and so could go to the Women's Library every week) for 13 months. I only left when I got my new job which entailed working Monday-Friday..
What did I gain from working in the Women's Library?
~ experience of working in another environment
~ the chance to learn much more about social history affecting women
~ the experience of handling archive material and the joy of rediscovering ephemera from Millicent Fawcett, Virginia Woolf and fascinating anonymous suffragettes.
~ the chance to work with truly lovely people in a building that looks like it will soon be lost to the penny pushers
~ the chance to practically demonstrate my interest in these topics on application forms
~the chance to put all of this on my c.v. when I applying for new jobs.
and these are just a few things quickly jotted down off the top of my head!
I was able to gain all this without distracting from the paid work of the librarians who were working at the Women's Library. I admit I asked for extra cataloguing experience but this was (kindly) turned down because there were people who were already hired to do this.
In short, I think volunteering in a library is an excellent way of gaining new experiences, helping institutions, networking and learning new knowledge. While working in public libraries, we often had volunteers (including prisoners being reintegrated into society) working there- helping in computer classes, events and doing displays etc.
However- it should be remembered throughout that this should not be done at the expense of existing staff. Although I was learning all the time about feminist history, there was no way that I could have answered an enquiry with the same knowledge and skill as the trained librarians who worked at the Women's Library. My ultimate aim was to get a new job from the experience of volunteering, something that would be impossible all the professional posts were taken by unpaid staff. I have also commented on Walk Astray's blog about other dangers from allowing volunteers to do the work of paid staff. And don't even get me started on the failings of the Big Society ideal!
Today's photo has been posted in support of the staff in Newcastle Libraries where it was announced that 10 out of the 18 libraries in the city will be closed. There are more opinions and links here I've just had a quick look and can't find an online petition. However, considering Newcastle Council have decided to cut their entire arts budget, there are other opportunities to sign in support of cultural activities including here
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