A Place for Children: Public Libraries as a Major Force in Children’s Reading

Citation

Turner, R. (2001), "A Place for Children: Public Libraries as a Major Force in Children’s Reading", New Library World, Vol. 102 No. 6, pp. 233-236. https://doi.org/10.1108/nlw.2001.102.6.233.3

This excellent research report by an impressive array of expert contributors was based on a major national project, The Place for Children, which investigated the qualitative impact of public libraries on children’s reading and the effectiveness of service provision.

It set out to address the question of how libraries were responding to the changing lifestyle and expectations of children. The research project methodology and results are thoughtfully contained in appendices.

Peggy Heeks begins the work with an analysis of the context in which children’s library services operate. Ray Lonsdale then addresses the specific role of children’s libraries in supporting literacy and in a later chapter discusses collection development. Debbie Denham, senior lecturer at the School of Information Studies, University of Central England in Birmingham, contributes vital chapters on the client group and partner organisations and on promoting the service. Heeks discusses the way service provision is assessed, while Judith Elkin provides an overview and summary of findings.

Each chapter is well written with good references and clear section headings. My only slight concern is the continuing tendency to consider school libraries and the services for young people in public libraries as two distinct operations, even though they are both often provided directly or indirectly by the local authority. Partnerships with schools only merits several cursory mentions, but more and more secondary schools have experienced chartered librarians whose knowledge could be tapped by public libraries much more and vice versa.

This book will be essential for all public libraries and for all their staff who work with children. It will also be useful to school librarians and anyone involved in developing the literacy of children.